Episódios

  • Ep 143 IVF, Part 1: Infertility

    Ep 143 IVF, Part 1: Infertility
    Jun 25 2024
    Content Warning: mentions of infertility, pregnancy loss We’re coming at you with not one, not two, but THREE whole episodes on IVF (in vitro fertilization) and other forms of assisted reproductive technologies (ART) over the next several weeks. Our first episode in this series starts things off with a broad examination of infertility over space and time. We take a closer look at headlines claiming infertility is on the rise, leading us to ask how we assess and measure infertility and whether those headlines take into account the changing meanings of the concept of infertility over human history. After our voyage through the social history of infertility, we explain what to expect when you go in for fertility testing, covering some of the most common causes of infertility and what “unexplained infertility” means as a diagnosis. But perhaps the most important part of this episode and the rest of this series are the firsthand accounts contributed by listeners who share some of the most intimate and emotional parts of their lives. We are forever indebted to all of you. Tune in today for part one of this series! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hora e 32 minutos
  • Special Episode: Dr. Noah Whiteman & Most Delicious Poison

    Special Episode: Dr. Noah Whiteman & Most Delicious Poison
    Jun 18 2024
    The word “poison” is much more subjective than it may first appear. It’s likely you’ve come across the phrase, “the dose makes the poison”, referring to some compounds that are beneficial in small amounts but deadly in others - such as digitalis. And then there’s the intended recipient of the “poison”; a poison to one animal might be a boon to another, like milkweeds and monarch butterflies. Our own relationships to poisons can be unpredictable. Attracted, addicted, healed, repelled, harmed, neutral - all are possible alone or in combination. Why do organisms produce caffeine, penicillin, alcohol, capsaicin, opioids, cyanide, and countless other poisons, and why are our responses so varied? That’s exactly what author Dr. Noah Whiteman explores in his book Most Delicious Poison: The Story of Nature's Toxins--From Spices to Vices. Dr. Whiteman, who is Professor of Genetics, Genomics, Evolution and Development and Director of the Essig Museum of Entomology at UC-Berkeley, takes us through the evolution, chemistry, and neuroscience of plant- and animal-derived poisons and explores the fine line between healing and harm. Weaving together personal narratives with stories of scientific discovery and evolutionary biology, Dr. Whiteman presents an expansive view of the world of these poisons and what they mean to us. Tune in today! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hora e 7 minutos
  • Ep 142 Leeches: It’s more powerful than magic, it’s nature

    Ep 142 Leeches: It’s more powerful than magic, it’s nature
    Jun 11 2024
    Did our episode on maggots leave you wanting more squirmy wormy yet oh so cool content? You’re in luck. Because this week, we’re following up our maggots episode with a companion piece on leeches. Leeches have been used by healers and physicians for millennia, and they’ve come back into style for treatments today, for very good reason. If you’ve ever wondered what makes leech saliva so magical, why barber poles are striped with red and white ribbons, or how leeches behave as parents, then this is certainly the episode for you. And we are so excited to be joined by friend of the pod Dr. Robert Rowe, who shares a tale of leeches from the front lines of plastic surgery. Dr. Rowe MD, MBA, MPH is a Preventive Medicine Physician who serves as adjunct faculty with both the University of North Carolina Preventive Medicine Residency Program and the Gillings School of Global Public Health. He is also the creator and host of TarHeal Wellness, a podcast dedicated to the health and wellbeing of medical residents, touching on physical and mental challenges many other people face as well. For those who have friends or family who are doctors or training to be, it's a great way to hear about some of the challenges of residency and how they can work through and overcome them. Available wherever you get your podcasts! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    56 minutos
  • Special Episode: Dr. Paul Offit & Tell Me When It’s Over

    Special Episode: Dr. Paul Offit & Tell Me When It’s Over
    Jun 4 2024
    The COVID-19 pandemic started with a bang - lockdowns, grocery store shelves cleared of their goods, toilet paper shortages, and a pervasive sense of panic. But more recently, it has slowly faded into the background for many of us. The WHO says that while we’re no longer in crisis mode, we are still in a pandemic. What does that mean for us in our daily lives? In this TPWKY book club episode, we’re joined by Dr. Paul Offit to discuss his recent book Tell Me When It’s Over: An Insider’s Guide to Deciphering COVID Myths and Navigating our Post-Pandemic World [Interview recorded February 21, 2024]. Dr. Offit, who is a pediatrician, vaccine expert, vaccine co-inventor (rotavirus), member of vaccines advisory committees, and long-time vaccine advocate, explains some of the COVID disinformation that continues to circulate about the virus, discusses where government institutions went wrong during the early months of the pandemic, and what we can expect now that the pandemic is no longer the public health emergency it once was. Tune in for a fascinating reflection on where we are in the pandemic today and how we can all fight against the rise in anti-science that threatens the future of public health. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    57 minutos
  • Ep 141 Maggots: Such noble work

    Ep 141 Maggots: Such noble work
    May 28 2024
    Just reading the title of this episode may have been enough to make you feel grossed out and creepy crawly. And now we’re asking you to listen to a whole episode about maggots? But trust us, it’s worth the journey. Because these little creatures have a hidden depth to them that will surprise, delight, and, we would venture to say, inspire. In this episode, we explore the many ways that maggots have been used by medicine over the centuries up to the present day and the properties they possess that make them heroes of healing. With a discerning palate and something called extracorporeal digestion, maggots can show us that, when it comes to wound healing, teamwork makes the dream work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    54 minutos
  • Ep 140 Nipah virus: Of Fruit and Bats

    Ep 140 Nipah virus: Of Fruit and Bats
    May 21 2024
    What does it take to make the WHO’s list of high priority pathogens of pandemic potential? Ask Nipah virus. Extremely deadly with a wide host range and no effective treatments or vaccine (yet), Nipah virus has certainly earned its place on this list. In this episode, we explore where this virus came from, how it can make us so very sick, and the 1998 outbreak in peninsular Malaysia that put Nipah virus on the map. But we don’t stop there! We bring on expert guest, Dr. Clifton McKee, research associate at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health to guide us through the ecological factors that drive Nipah virus spillover events and outbreaks. With Dr. McKee’s help, we explore what a One Health approach to Nipah virus looks like and how it integrates study across animals, humans, and the environment to help predict and control when and where this virus might spill over. Tune in to learn more about this deadly virus that inspired the 2011 movie Contagion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hora e 36 minutos
  • Special Episode: Dr. Sara Manning Peskin & A Molecule Away from Madness

    Special Episode: Dr. Sara Manning Peskin & A Molecule Away from Madness
    May 14 2024
    We live on the edge. Whether we fail to acknowledge it or try not to think of it, that fact remains true for most of us. A chemical shift, a rogue protein, a marauding molecule - our brains are vulnerable to an array of attacks that could dramatically alter our connection with the world and ourselves. In this episode of the TPWKY book club, Dr. Sara Manning Peskin, MD, MS, assistant professor of clinical neurology at the University of Pennsylvania and author, joins us to discuss her book A Molecule Away from Madness: Tales of the Hijacked Brain. Deeply fascinating, occasionally terrifying, and always empathetic, A Molecule Away from Madness features individual cases of the brain gone awry. Dr. Manning Peskin artfully combines these emotional and personal stories with approachable explanations of how our brains work and historical descriptions of how we gained this understanding. Tune in to this captivating conversation wherever you get your podcasts! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hora e 2 minutos
  • Ep 139 Supplements: “This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA”

    Ep 139 Supplements: “This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA”
    May 7 2024
    Does it seem like the supplement section of your grocery store gets bigger every time you go in? Or that all television commercials these days seem to be advertising dietary supplements that promise to improve your concentration, help you lose weight, make you happier, healthier, smarter, stronger, cooler, poop better or some mix of those? You’re not imagining things. The explosion of the US dietary supplement industry over the past few years is very real, and when you’re inundated with ads for supplements everywhere you turn, it can be very difficult to navigate whether these things actually do what they say and how much they’re allowed to say without actually doing anything. That’s where this episode comes in. We take you through what supplements actually are, how their regulation in the US has changed over the past century, what dietary supplements can and cannot claim on their label, and how the supplement market has fared since the Covid pandemic (spoilers: it’s thriving). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hora e 33 minutos