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The Debbie Nigro ShowAuthor: Debbie Nigro
Nobody sees the glass of Cabernet half full like Debbie. She is fresh air with a magnetic flare. Debbie was the winner of the prestigious 'Best Nationally Syndicated Talk Show of The Year' three years in a row, from American Women in Radio and Television. Risk it or Regret it! Language: en Genres: Business, Comedy, Entrepreneurship Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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Bears, Brains, Creatine & a Little Adventure: "Keeping the LIVE in Alive"! Just Another Wellness Wednesday!
Tuesday, 29 September, 2026
What good is living longer if we're not living well while we're here? That's pretty much the whole idea behind my Wellness Wednesday show, Keeping the 'Live' in Alive! Every week I go poking around for interesting things that might help us feel better, stay stronger, keep our brains working, have more fun, connect with other humans — and maybe learn something we didn't know yesterday. And this past week? I covered everything from fat bears in Alaska to creatine, younger brains, cellular "battery swaps," cold calls and why we all need a little more adventure. Fat Bear Week Is Down to the Final Two — and I'm Following This Yes, this is actually a thing — and I love it. Every year, Alaska's Katmai National Park celebrates its brown bears as they bulk up before hibernation. People around the world follow the bears on live cameras at Explore.org and vote during Fat Bear Week. Millions of people have gotten hooked on watching these magnificent creatures catch salmon, raise their cubs and basically eat like there's no tomorrow — because for hibernation purposes, there kind of isn't. September 29, is the Fat Bear Week 2026 FINAL. The final two are Bear #89 "Backpack" vs. Bear #910. Backpack narrowly beat #164 "Bucky Dent," while #910 defeated #132 and her three cubs in yesterday's semifinals. My engineer Bob pulled up the live bear cam while I was on the air and suddenly, we were watching bears fishing for lunch during my radio show. Too bad it isn't that easy for humans to pick up some salmon for dinner. LOL HOW DO YOU WARM UP A COLD CALL WHEN NOBODY GIVES YOU A NUMBER TO CALL? Remember when you actually called somebody you wanted to do business with? Now we have LinkedIn, email, texts, DMs, WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, contact forms, Calendly links — and somehow with ALL these ways to communicate, it sometimes feels harder than ever to actually connect. My conclusion? Relationships are everything. And being older has an advantage: we've had more time to put good people "in the bank." But you still must make new relationships. My advice: Be human. Be warm. Have some personality. Use somebody's name. Tell them why you thought of them. And for heaven's sake, if you're pitching somebody, include your full name, company, phone number and website! Please don't make me conduct a small FBI investigation to figure out who you are. LOL. And if somebody doesn't respond? Give them the benefit of the doubt and follow up. Your brilliant message may simply be sitting in their junk folder. A RARE GLP-1 VISION CONCERN WORTH KNOWING ABOUT One health story really caught my attention. A 66-year-old woman who had been taking Wegovy reported suddenly losing vision in one eye and was diagnosed with a rare condition called NAION, sometimes described as a type of "stroke" of the optic nerve. The possible connection between semaglutide drugs and NAION is being studied, and the show discussion noted that researchers have not established that GLP-1 medications caused this individual case. The condition has been described as a very rare potential risk, and the overall benefits of these medications may still greatly outweigh the risk for appropriate patients. Still, it's information worth knowing — and worth discussing with your own doctor, especially if you experience any sudden vision changes. CAN EXERCISE ACTUALLY HELP KEEP YOUR BRAIN YOUNGER? We know exercise helps the heart, muscles, bones and waistline. But what about your brain? I talked about new research involving postmenopausal women suggesting that regular aerobic exercise may improve executive function and measures associated with brain health. So maybe we need to stop thinking about exercise only as something we do to look younger. Maybe we should be moving to help our brains stay younger. Now that motivates me. CREATINE ISN'T JUST FOR BODYBUILDERS ANYMORE This one surprised me. I've always associated creatine with my daughter, son-in-law and people pumping iron at the gym. Apparently, I need to update my thinking. Research is increasingly looking at creatine in connection with muscle preservation, strength, healthy aging and potentially brain health. And maintaining muscle becomes incredibly important as we get older — particularly during weight loss, when we don't want to lose valuable lean tissue along with the fat. My takeaway? Creatine has officially made it onto my "I need to learn more about this" list. CELLS GIVING OTHER CELLS NEW "BATTERIES"? This may have been the coolest science story of the show. Stanford Medicine researchers have been studying how healthy cells from bone marrow transplants can transfer mitochondria — essentially the energy-producing machinery inside our cells — to unhealthy neighboring cells. Think of it as one cell saying: "Hey, your battery is dying. Here — take mine." Obviously, the actual science is a whole lot more complicated than that, LOL, but the research could have implications for certain rare mitochondrial diseases. Every time I read something like this, I'm reminded how many brilliant people are out there trying to solve problems that once seemed impossible. "MOVEMENT LONGEVITY" — NOW THERE'S A PHRASE I LIKE Jennifer Aniston has been talking about something called movement longevity — shifting the conversation about fitness away from punishment and appearance and toward something much more important: Staying capable. Strength. Mobility. Stability. Being able to get up, get out, travel, carry things, bend down, play with the grandkids and keep doing the things that make your life YOUR life. I've changed my own thinking about exercise lately. Some days I just tell myself: MOVE. Get away from the computer. Get outside. Walk. Stretch. Do something. Because the goal isn't simply looking better. The goal is staying in the game. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU HAD AN ADVENTURE? I believe adventure belongs in the wellness prescription. There's growing interest in the connection between outdoor adventure, nature, physical challenges, social connection and our physical and psychological well-being. And adventure doesn't have to mean climbing the Matterhorn. Although one of my best friends seems to be somewhere around the world doing exactly that every time she sends me another photo. LOL. It could mean riding your bike on a trail. Going somewhere you've never been. Taking the longer drive. Making a left instead of the right you always make. Trying something that pushes you just a little beyond your comfort zone. We even talked about Survivor. Strip away the TV drama and think about what's happening: unfamiliar environments, problem-solving, teamwork, physical challenges, adapting under pressure and figuring things out with other human beings. That's a pretty good recipe for keeping your brain — and your life — engaged. THE DAILY TOAST I ended the show with this thought: Here's to never getting too old to try something new, go somewhere different or surprise yourself. You don't need to be on Survivor to have an adventure. You just need to keep saying YES to life. Here's to Keeping the 'Live' in Alive! Cheers, my friends. Onward! Debbie
