Joe Leech is a university-qualified dietitian from Australia.
He graduated with a Bachelor's degree in exercise science, followed by a Master's degree in Nutrition and Dietetics from the University of Wollongong in 2011 (completing his thesis in Finland).
He then worked as a both a clinical and private consulting dietitian for several years, focusing on food intolerance, autoimmune diseases and metabolic health issues.
In 2013 he began learning the skill of science communication - specifically nutrition science - as a member of the Australasian Medical Writers Association. He then became the primary contributor to Healthline's Authority Nutrition website in 2014, and has been researching and writing articles on nutrition ever since.
Joe also creates expert nutrition videos, and has now created almost 200 videos for Healthline's Authority Nutrition Youtube channel, which have been viewed by over 5 million people.
How does Joe make health a priority?
"I try to cook at home as much as possible, even if it means batch cooking and freezing meals. Just this year I've made going to the gym a priority as I was really slack last year. Aiming to train 4 times per week!"
Learn more about Joe:
- Instagram: @joe_leech
- Diet vs Disease Youtube
Articles by this author
Acid Reflux, GERD and Heartburn: What Actually Helps?
A dietitian explains the food, meal-timing and daily-habit factors worth checking when acid reflux, GERD or heartburn keeps returning.
The GERD Diet: What To Eat, What To Limit, and Why Trigger Lists Conflict
A practical explanation of GERD food triggers, gentler starting choices, meal timing and why one universal reflux diet does not exist.
Silent Reflux (LPR): Why Throat Symptoms Can Happen Without Heartburn
A careful explanation of silent reflux and LPR, why throat symptoms are not specific to reflux, and which food and meal habits are worth reviewing.
Low FODMAP Diet Basics: What I’d Do in the First 7 Days
Most people start the low FODMAP diet the same way: they delete half their diet on day one. By day three, they’re eating plain chicken and rice, running out of ideas, and quietly wondering if there’s anything left they can actually eat.
That’s not a failure of willpower. That’s a failure of having a plan.
If you’ve Googled “low FODMAP diet” and felt instantly overwhelmed by giant food tables and fifty different serving sizes to memorize, you’re not alone. Most people quit before they ever really start properly — not because the diet doesn’t work, but because week one goes wrong in predictable ways.
Below, I walk through exactly what I’d do in the first seven days: what to pull out, what to keep, what to eat, and the traps that catch most beginners before they ever get to reintroduction.
Here’s a video we made; there is also a written version underneath.
[Discover More…]IBS-D: 5 Signs You Need More Than a Food List
If you’re still planning your life around bathrooms even while eating “safe” foods, your IBS-D probably needs more than another food list.
Because food can matter. A lot. Lactose-containing dairy can matter. Coffee can matter. Fatty meals can matter. Other FODMAPs can matter.
But if the list keeps getting longer and your confidence keeps getting smaller, food may only be one piece of the pattern.
This is the question people keep asking in different ways: “I’ve found my trigger foods, so why do I still have urgency?” Or, “Why are there no fully safe foods?” Or, “Why do I eat the same meal twice, and only one time it sends me running?”
In this article, I’ll show you five signs your diarrhea-predominant IBS needs a bigger framework than “avoid this, eat that.” And the last one is especially important because some symptoms deserve medical review, not another diet sheet.
Here’s a video we made; there is also a written version underneath.
[Discover More…]The Diverticulitis Antibiotics Mistake
Doctors used to treat diverticulitis almost automatically with antibiotics. You had the pain, you got the scan, and very often the next step was a prescription. But the advice has changed.
Antibiotics aren’t for everyone and aren’t meant to be used in every situation. And please don’t hear this as “never take antibiotics.” That would be dangerous. But for selected cases of mild, uncomplicated diverticulitis, the newer guideline position is much more nuanced — antibiotics are no longer treated as automatic, because in those selected cases, they don’t appear to speed recovery or prevent recurrence the way we once assumed.
And that matters, because a lot of people are still working from the old model: “I had a flare. I took antibiotics. Therefore, I’ve handled the diverticulitis.” That’s the real mistake. Not taking antibiotics when they’re needed — the mistake is thinking antibiotics are the whole plan.
In this article, I’ll walk you through what changed, when antibiotics still matter, what the main studies found, and the exact questions to ask your doctor after a flare so you’re not just waiting for the next one.
Here’s a video we made; there is also a written version underneath.
[Discover More…]Why You Look Pregnant By The End Of The Day
If your stomach looks fairly normal in the morning but by dinnertime you look six months pregnant, you are not imagining it.
This is one of the most common things people tell us: “I look pregnant by the end of the day,” or “I feel like I swallowed a watermelon,” or even “My bloating gets bigger as the day goes on.”
And the usual advice is almost always food advice: “cut this food”, “avoid that food,” or “try another list.”
But if your belly is visibly changing throughout the day, food may only be one part of the story.
In this article, I explain the five reasons this can happen, what the timing may tell you, and why a stricter food list is not always the answer.
Here’s a video we made; there is also a written version underneath.
[Discover More…]5 Things That Make Diverticulitis Flares More Likely
Most people with diverticulitis ask the same question after a flare: “What did I eat?”
Was it the nuts? Was it the popcorn? Was it that salad? Was it the steak from three nights ago?
You see the same questions everywhere people talk about diverticulitis: coffee before breakfast, red meat, seeds, constipation, stress, fiber, alcohol, and genetics. People are trying to find the one thing they did wrong.
But flares usually aren’t caused by one magic food. In fact, one large study published in JAMA followed more than 47,000 men and found that nuts, corn, and popcorn did not increase diverticulitis risk — and popcorn was actually linked with a lower risk in that study (1).
So if you’ve been blaming one meal, or one tiny seed, you may be looking in the wrong place. And if you’re thinking, “But I eat healthy, so why did this still happen?” then that’s exactly why we need to zoom out. A Mediterranean-style diet, salads, or high-fiber foods don’t make you immune if the rest of the pattern is still working against you.
Below, I share the five things that make diverticulitis flares more likely and show you how to actually fix the pattern between the flares.
Here’s a video we made; there is also a written version underneath.
[Discover More…]Going Gluten-Free Didn’t Fix Your Gut? Here’s Why
Have you gone gluten-free because your gut was a mess — the bloating, the pain, the cramping — and found that it helped at first, but then the symptoms came back? Or maybe you switched to gluten-free products and somehow started feeling worse?
If that sounds familiar, you’re not doing it wrong. And you’re not imagining it.
The gluten-free food market is worth almost eight billion dollars and growing, with tens of millions of people worldwide currently avoiding gluten. But here’s what most of them have never been told: for the vast majority of people eating gluten-free for gut symptoms, the relief they experienced had almost nothing to do with gluten.
In this article, I’m going to explain exactly why that happens, what’s actually going on inside your gut, and what to do instead so you can eat with far more freedom and far less confusion.
Here’s a video we made; there is also a written version underneath.
[Discover More…]Trying to start low FODMAP? Here’s the food list most people wish they had first
Advertorial test created for Diet vs Disease Google Ads review.
Why Diverticulitis Keeps Coming Back (What Doctors Miss)
One in three people who have a diverticulitis flare will have another one. Not because they did anything wrong after the first one. Not because they ignored their doctor’s advice. Most of them did everything they were told. The problem is that what they were told was incomplete. And in some cases, the standard approach may actually be making the cycle worse.
In this article, I’m going to walk through four things that the conventional medical system consistently gets wrong about diverticulitis.
Here is a video we made; there is also a written version underneath.
[Discover More…]Half of People Over 60 Have Diverticulosis. Most Don’t Know.
More than half of all people over the age of 60 have diverticulosis. Most of them have absolutely no idea.
Not because they haven’t been paying attention. Not because they’ve been eating badly. But because nobody told them. And in many cases — including cases we see regularly in our clinic — their own doctor doesn’t explain what’s happening inside their gut, why, or what it means for their future.
In this article, I’m going to explain the five things that most people are never told about how diverticulosis actually develops. And one of them (I’ll save it for last) is something that even the medical research is only just starting to figure out. It might be the most important one of all.
Please keep in mind that this is educational information only and not direct medical advice for your specific situation.
Here is a video we made; there is also a written version underneath.
[Discover More…]
