Exercise, muscles, health, nutrition: Professor Lynch on ABC Radio

If you’ve got a burning question about your physical or mental health, chances are Professor Gordon Lynch, of the Department of Physiology, has answered it on popular radio show Overnights.

Ever wondered how much sleep is really enough? Which health numbers matter most? What are the actual health benefits of foods like garlic and broccoli? Or can exercise combat the silent killer – stress?

Professor Gordon Lynch, of the School of Biomedical Sciences Department of Physiology, addresses these topics and many more on the ABC radio’s Overnights program.

Professor Lynch has appeared on the show every week for the past 18 years.

“I’m often asked why are skeletal muscles important? Well, they are, in fact, essential for life. We need muscles to breathe, eat and interact with the environment,” he explains.

“Building and maintaining healthy muscles is required for generating body heat, metabolism and movement throughout life. Sadly, as we age, muscles begin to shrink, lose their strength and fail to repair properly – threatening independence, productivity and quality of life.”

Identifying ways to optimise muscle growth and development, enhance muscle repair and adaptation, protect muscles from inherited and acquired conditions and prevent frailty in older age, requires cutting-edge research in muscle biology, from discovery to translation, and that’s what Professor Lynch’s work is all about.

“We study the biology of human performance and fatigue, the creation of alternative foods from harvested muscle stem cells, how to treat muscle diseases and wasting conditions like ageing and cancer, and how to optimise repair of damaged muscles after severe trauma to restore function and enhance quality of life.”

Take a listen to Professor Lynch in these episodes of ABC Radio's Overnights program:

Find out more about Professor Gordon Lynch and the Department of Physiology.