Back in the age of glamour, radium was all the rage. Sure, it was highly radioactive, but boy did it make you glow. And glow was in. This is the story of how an extremely dangerous substance was used in everything from watch-making to wellness products and, of course, beauty. 

Step into the world of 19th-century beauty salons, where women risked everything for a flawless, pale complexion. In this episode, you’ll meet the powders and creams secretly laced with lead, mercury, and arsenic—ingredients that silently wreaked havoc on anyone who used them.