America Dissected

Food Contamination is On the Rise. Here’s What History Can Teach Us About How to Stop It.

One of the hallmarks of living in a high-income country is that we can usually take food safety for granted. But what happens when food contamination recalls are on the rise? Food contamination was a full-blown epidemic at the turn ...

Mexico Tried to Regulate Tony the Tiger. Here’s what Happened Next.

In 2019, the Mexican government instituted a new rule that took mascots like El Tigre Toño off of high-sugar foods. The food industry fought back. And now a similar fight may be coming to the United States. Abdul reflects on ...

Some Bad Mother Suckers with Stephanie Nolen

Mosquitoes are responsible for upwards of half of all deaths in human history. Beyond being a simple nuisance, the diseases they spread are a menace to humanity. A decade ago, we thought we’d had them beaten. We didn’t — and ...

Activating Public Health with Dr. Shelley Hearne

The truth should speak for itself. The problem is that it just doesn’t speak very loudly — we have to speak for it. Which is why public health has to be a lot smarter about the process of policy change. ...

Mailbag!

Dialyzing for Dollars with Tom Mueller

Dialysis is a medical miracle — vastly extending the lives of people with kidney disease. But then big business got involved.

Drowning to Swim with Mara Gay

Drowning is an epidemic in America. And like so many other public health challenges, it’s what happens when we over-privatize a public good.

The In-Between with Hadley Vlahos

Dying … is not a topic most of us like to talk about. But we probably should, considering that all of us are going to do it someday.

What the HOKA? with Dr. Jordan Metzl

You can’t miss them, HOKAs — those clunky athletic shoes with the thick foamy sole — are everywhere. But why?

Affirming Care with Dr. Kellan Baker

What is gender-affirming care — and why is the far right trying to ban it?

Trooth Decay with Tooka Zokaie

Why are there so many conspiracy theories about fluoride?

DrGPT with Dr. Eric Topol

ChatGPT set off a flurry of excitement — and anxiety — over the impact Artificial Intelligence will have on every aspect of society. One of the most important disruptions that AI will impose is on health and healthcare. Abdul reflects ...

MSG for You and Me with Yasmin Tayag

Food is life. But just like lives, some foods are valued more than others — some are told they don’t belong. So what happens when the entire medical establishment becomes a part of that exclusion? That’s exactly what happened to ...

Mail Order Meds with Chris Hamby

Treatment-specific online companies have exploded since the pandemic. But the ethics are… complicated.

Polling Public Health with Dr. Brian Castrucci

There are two central challenges to public communication: knowing how you're perceived and knowing who you’re not hearing back from. We don’t do either well in public health.

Miffed about Mifepristone with Dr. Kristyn Brandi

Access to the abortion medication mifepristone is in question after a dubious ruling from an ideological judge in Texas.

The Contagion of Liberty with Prof. Andrew Wehrman

“Those who cannot remember the past are doomed to repeat it.” That’s for damn sure when it comes to vaccinations.

Why Are Girls Hitting Puberty Younger? with Jessica Winter

Puberty is awkward. But that’s, in part, because we continue to feed the stigma around it. Now, puberty is happening earlier for girls, a trend accelerated by the pandemic.

Private Equity vs. Public Health with Eileen O’Grady

Across the country, healthcare chains have been buying hospitals up like properties on a Monopoly board — changing their names and shuttering hospitals in rural communities. What’s driving this? The corporate influence on healthcare. Private equity firms with no expertise ...

Twice as Hard with Jasmine Brown

Becoming a doctor is hard. Becoming a doctor when you face discrimination because of your race AND gender? Twice as hard.

The Fate of Football (Players) with Garrett Bush

Weight, Weight, Don’t Tell Me with Prof. Harriet Brown

What is obesity, exactly?

Making Your Resolutions Stick with Prof. Katy Milkman

Imagine setting a New Year’s Resolution — and actually achieving it! Living healthier and losing weight accounts for more than 40% of all New Year’s resolutions. But actually achieving them? That’s a different story. To be sure, “personal fortitude” and ...

Ellen Needs Insurance with Ellen Haun

Health insurance in America is anything but “sure.” Most Americans under Medicare age rely on their employment for their insurance — but that leaves millions of people struggling to get basic insurance, or worse, uninsured. Ellen Haun is an actor ...

America’s First Paramedics with Kevin Hazzard

Did you know that modern emergency medical services owe their origins to an all-Black paramedic team in Pittsburgh in the ‘60s? Author and former paramedic Kevin Hazzard tells the story in his new book “American Sirens.” Abdul reflects on the ...