The Poor Historians: Medical History Misadventures

Dr. Max, Dr. Aaron, Dr. Mike, and Alba
  • 4.8 (86)
  • HISTORY
  • UPDATED BIWEEKLY
The Poor Historians: Medical History Misadventures

This is a show for all the nerdy medical history people.Three modern emergency physicians and their show's "medical history intern" take a lighthearted, humorous  quest through various stories in the history of medicine.  Topics from ancient times to recent history, all related to important advancements, people, or discoveries in the history of medicine.  New episodes every two weeks!

  1. OCT 24

    The Chicago Tylenol Murders and Halloween Sadism

    If you've ever wondered why your over-the-counter pill bottles have that annoying little foil under the cap, you'll be happy to know it's there for good reason. It all stems from this true-crime meets toxicology story. We'll lay it all out here in this episode.Support the show-----PHPod Merch Store (t-shirts and other swag)-----Podcast Linktree (social media links / reviews / ratings)-----#medicine #medicalhistory #history #historypodcast

    55 min

  2. OCT 10

    Comstock Laws and Women's Health in the Gilded Age with Special Guest, Alicia Gutierrez-Romine, PhD

    We welcome our special guest historian to discuss an overview of issues affecting medical history and it's approaches to women's health during the late 19th century into the early 20th. We'll talk about Anthony Comstock and his silly morality-influenced laws, discuss early forms of contraception, and will examine all of this amidst the cultural milieu of the era. We'll go out on a limb and say the doctors of this age were a bit behind the times and we're happy to laugh at their expense.G...

    1h 6m

  3. SEP 26

    The Origins of Placebos and their Effects

    This is a fascinating and complicated dive into the history behind the first placebos and observations of their effects. We'll do our best not to lose our own minds trying to sort out the complexities of the placebo effect as we understood it simply in the past, and try to contrast that with all of the newer science on the topic. This gets weird.Sources:Wikipedia: Placebo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlaceboThe Neuroscience of Placebo Effects, Nature Reviews (paywall), Wager and Atlas https:...

    1h 12m

  4. SEP 12

    The Krebiozen Hoax-An Infamous Quack Cancer Treatment

    This episode was brought to you by our main source, the excellent book on the topic by Matthew C. Ehrlich entitled, The Krebiozan Hoax: How a mysterious Cancer Drug Shook Organized Medicine. Check it out via that link and show the author some love. It's a great addition to your medical history library.This is the story of how a 22-year elaborate hoax was delivered to the American public of the 1940's-1960's in the form of a purported cancer cure. Preying on the hope of those suffering from te...

    1h 12m

  5. AUG 29

    The Multiple Murder Attempts of "Durable" Mike Malloy: A Medical History Perspective

    This episode is a blend of true crime and criminal ineptitude. We'll walk through the story of how a gaggle of NYC barflys in the early 20th century U.S. Prohibition Era conspired (very badly) to murder an Irish immigrant who would later be nicknamed "The Irish Rasputin" for his incredible survival of multiple attempts on his life. How did this all transpire, medically speaking? Let's find out.Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Malloyhttps://medium.com/the-crime-historian/meet-t...

    1h 4m

  6. AUG 15

    A History of Breast Surgery: Wax, Oil, and Silicone

    This is one of those episodes where we're happy to have Alba's perspective. We'll explore the history of breast surgery, it's various early procedures, and a host of things done to change women's chests for a variety of reasons.References: https://citylights.com/topographies/cleavage-man-made-breasts/ Cleavage book, Nora Jacobson, 2000 (MAIN SOURCE)Squeezing saline bag story, https://www.chron.com/local/history/innovators-inventions/article/Local-invention-made-Houston-international-hub-...

    1h 15m

  7. AUG 1

    The First U.S. Opiate Crisis: The Civil War and the Opium Eaters

    History does have a way of repeating itself--at least in broad strokes. In this episode we'll discuss the first opiate crisis the U.S. ever suffered and do a bit of comparison to modern times. From opium, to morphine, to heroin, these substances have been a part of civilization for much longer than most realize.If you or someone you know may be struggling with opiates or other addictive substances, SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) has a confidential 24/7, 365...

    1h 1m

  8. JUL 18

    Alcohol in Civilization, Culture, and Medical History

    It's probably popular knowledge that alcohol as a substance of use--and potential misuse--has been with humankind since our earliest days. In this episode, Dr. Mike explores the earliest references to alcohol and takes us through a tour of it's evolution alongside various cultures and eventual recognition as a poison that is capable of great harm. This includes an overview of early addiction treatment and some discussion of how alcohol affects human physiology. -----If you or someone you...

    1h 9m
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4.8
out of 5
86 Ratings

About

This is a show for all the nerdy medical history people.Three modern emergency physicians and their show's "medical history intern" take a lighthearted, humorous  quest through various stories in the history of medicine.  Topics from ancient times to recent history, all related to important advancements, people, or discoveries in the history of medicine.  New episodes every two weeks!

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