This Podcast Will Kill You

Exactly Right
  • 4.8 (16K)
  • SCIENCE
  • UPDATED BIWEEKLY
This Podcast Will Kill You

This podcast might not actually kill you, but Erin Welsh and Erin Allmann Updyke cover so many things that can. In each episode, they tackle a different topic, teaching listeners about the biology, history, and epidemiology of a different disease or medical mystery. They do the scientific research, so you don’t have to.   Since 2017, Erin and Erin have explored chronic and infectious diseases, medications, poisons, viruses, bacteria and scientific discoveries. They’ve researched public health subjects including plague, Zika, COVID-19, lupus, asbestos, endometriosis and more. Each episode is accompanied by a creative quarantini cocktail recipe and a non-alcoholic placeborita. Erin Welsh, Ph.D. is a co-host of the This Podcast Will Kill You. She is a disease ecologist and epidemiologist and works full-time as a science communicator through her work on the podcast. Erin Allmann Updyke, MD, Ph.D. is a co-host of This Podcast Will Kill You. She’s an epidemiologist and disease ecologist currently in the final stretch of her family medicine residency program. This Podcast Will Kill You is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including science, true crime, comedic interviews, news, pop culture and more. Podcasts on the network include My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, Buried Bones, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast and more.

  1. 20 HR. AGO

    Ep 166 Amanita poisoning: Death Cap-tivating

    In forests, in lawns, in city parks across the world lurks a small, pale, unassuming mushroom whose inconspicuous appearance belies its deadly nature. For within this mushroom dwelsl one of the deadliest poisons known to humans: amatoxin. It’s because of this toxin that the aptly-named ‘death cap mushroom’ (Amanita phalloides) is responsible for the vast majority of mushroom-related deaths around the globe each year. What makes this poisonous mushroom so very deadly, and is there anything we can do about it? In this episode, we take a journey through this legendary mushroom’s story, exploring its destructive biology, its murderous history, and its worrying yet hopeful future. Tune in to learn more about these mushrooms that show death can come in small packages. Support this podcast by shopping our latest sponsor deals and promotions at this link: https://bit.ly/3WwtIAu See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    1h 10m

  2. FEB 11

    Ep 165 Fish Tongue Parasite: Parasite Appreciation Hour

    Okay everyone, think about your tongue. Maybe move it around a bit, check in with it, consider what it means to you. Now imagine that your tongue suddenly shriveled up and fell off and that in its place is a tongue-sized isopod aka rollie pollie aka pillbug. Just there, hanging out, forever. How are you feeling? Horrified? Disgusted? Hey, we get it. But at least you’ll never be alone again. Believe it or not, this is not some bad creative writing exercise. This is a very real parasite. In fact, it’s not just one but a whole group of them. Fortunately for us humans, these tongue-replacing isopods don’t target mammals but rather various fish species (unfortunately for the fish). And in this week’s episode, we’re getting up close and personal with these bizarre (and dare we say cute?) organ-replacing parasites. If you’re wondering why on earth you should care about a niche parasite like this one or why it might be a bad idea to get rid of all of earth’s parasites, then we warmly invite you to sit back, relax, and enjoy this parasite appreciation hour. Support this podcast by shopping our latest sponsor deals and promotions at this link: https://bit.ly/3WwtIAu See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    1h 3m

  3. FEB 4

    Ep 164 Rift Valley Fever: Ruminating on ruminants

    Hemorrhagic virus? Check. Deadly disease? Check. Mosquito-borne? Check. Affected by animal movement, human activity, and environmental change? Check. Rift Valley Fever has all the markings of a classic TPWKY episode. This week, we’re doing a deep dive on this deadly virus, taking a One Health approach to explore the intricate relationships between animals, humans, and the environment to understand how this virus moves across the landscape. We trace the various paths this virus takes: through the organisms it infects, across the globe as it spreads, and over time as it appears to be evolving to be deadlier. Tune in to learn more about Rift Valley fever and what we might see with this pathogen in the years to come.

    1h 15m

  4. JAN 28

    Ep 163 Circadian Rhythm: Live from Perth, Australia

    We are coming at you with our very first live episode from Perth, Australia! Here at the 2024 Australian Institute of Occupational Hygienists Annual Scientific Conference and Exhibition, occupational hazards and exposures get top billing. And one of the most ubiquitous hazards, experienced by nearly every industry is fatigue, specifically fatigue caused by circadian rhythm disruption. In this very special episode, we explore how our circadian rhythms work and some of the consequences that can emerge when we work against those rhythms, whether that’s because we’re traveling across many time zones or switching to night shift work.

    1h 12m

  5. JAN 21

    Special Episode: Robert Alpert, Merle Eisenberg, Lee Mordechai & Diseased Cinema

    Everyone’s got a favorite disease movie. What’s yours? Does it feature zombies like 28 Days Later (2002), or is it more grounded in reality, like Contagion (2011)? Does it end with a glimmer of hope or with a dose of despair? Who are the bad guys and who are the good guys? From the early days of disease movies like Panic in the Streets (1950) to more recent films like Little Joe (2019), these movies have provided endless entertainment, excitement, and opportunities to examine society itself.

    46 min

  6. JAN 14

    Ep 162 Allergies Part 2: Shots, pills, & pens

    Yes, the world may be out to get us with allergens around every corner, but we’ve got some tricks up our sleeve to help us cope. Our allergy treatment toolkit includes an impressive suite of tools, and in the second episode of our two-part series on allergies, we focus on three in particular: antihistamine medications, allergy shots, and the epinephrine auto-injector (aka the EpiPen). We take you through how exactly each of these work, trace their development from concept to product, and highlight some of the most promising areas of allergy treatment research today. Have you ever wondered why we have so many different types of antihistamines? Or thought about what the Cold War has to do with the EpiPen? Then this is the episode for you.

    1h 33m

  7. JAN 7

    Ep 161 Allergies Part 1: Pollens, nuts, & bugs

    Sometimes it seems like the world is out to get us: bees in our garden, pollen in the air, nuts in our brownies, any number of other things that could trigger an allergic reaction ranging from itchy eyes and a runny nose all the way to anaphylaxis. Why must our bodies react in such over-the-top ways to these seemingly innocuous substances? In the first episode of our two-parter on allergies, we explore that very question. From the biological basis of an allergic reaction to the potential evolutionary significance of allergies, from the history of their discovery to the global status of allergies today, we cover it all. Tune in today!

    1h 24m

  8. 12/17/2024

    Special Episode: Philip Eil & Prescription for Pain

    In February 2012, Paul Volkman was sentenced to four consecutive terms of life imprisonment for his role in illegally prescribing and dispensing pain medications that resulted in the deaths of several individuals in his care. This was a remarkable case, both in terms of the lengthy sentence as well as the perpetrator. Paul Volkman was a highly-educated physician researcher, who earned both his MD and PhD and had decades of experience practicing medicine. How did he end up in a cash-only pain clinic in southern Ohio? In this TPWKY book club episode, journalist Philip Eil joins me to trace Volkman’s journey as outlined in Eil’s book Prescription for Pain: How a Once-Promising Doctor Became the “Pill Mill Killer”. Eil places Volkman’s actions in the broader context of the opioid epidemic and reflects on the lasting impact Volkman’s case has had on painkiller regulation and the communities most impacted by his crimes. Tune in for a fascinating conversation about what happens when a doctor decides he is above the law.

    1 hr
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Hosts & Guests

4.8
out of 5
16,282 Ratings

About

This podcast might not actually kill you, but Erin Welsh and Erin Allmann Updyke cover so many things that can. In each episode, they tackle a different topic, teaching listeners about the biology, history, and epidemiology of a different disease or medical mystery. They do the scientific research, so you don’t have to.   Since 2017, Erin and Erin have explored chronic and infectious diseases, medications, poisons, viruses, bacteria and scientific discoveries. They’ve researched public health subjects including plague, Zika, COVID-19, lupus, asbestos, endometriosis and more. Each episode is accompanied by a creative quarantini cocktail recipe and a non-alcoholic placeborita. Erin Welsh, Ph.D. is a co-host of the This Podcast Will Kill You. She is a disease ecologist and epidemiologist and works full-time as a science communicator through her work on the podcast. Erin Allmann Updyke, MD, Ph.D. is a co-host of This Podcast Will Kill You. She’s an epidemiologist and disease ecologist currently in the final stretch of her family medicine residency program. This Podcast Will Kill You is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including science, true crime, comedic interviews, news, pop culture and more. Podcasts on the network include My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, Buried Bones, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast and more.

Information

  • Channel
    Exactly Right
  • Creator
    iHeartPodcasts
  • Years Active
    2017 - 2025
  • Episodes
    221
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Exactly Right Media – the original true crime comedy network
  • Show Website
    This Podcast Will Kill You

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