111 episodes
Maintenance Phase MP After Dark
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- Health & Fitness
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4.7 • 14.7K Ratings
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Debunking the junk science behind health fads, wellness scams and nonsensical nutrition advice.
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"Rapid Onset Gender Dysphoria"
Panic! At the endocrinologist.
Thanks to Jules Gill-Peterson (jgillpeterson.com) and Julia Serano (patreon.com/juliaserano) for help researching this episode and Evan Urquhart and Parker Molloy for fact-checking!
Support us:
Hear bonus episodes on PatreonDonate on PayPalGet Maintenance Phase T-shirts, stickers and moreWatch Aubrey's documentaryBuy Aubrey's bookListen to Mike's other podcastLinks!
Origins of "Social Contagion" and "Rapid Onset Gender Dysphoria"What does the scholarly research say about the effect of gender transition on transgender well-being?Mental Health Outcomes in Transgender and Nonbinary Youths Receiving Gender-Affirming CareFresh trans myths of 2017: “rapid onset gender dysphoria”Rapid Onset of Gender Dysphoria in Adolescents and Young Adults: a Descriptive StudyThe Detransitioners: They Were Transgender, Until They Weren'tHow the idea of a “transgender contagion” went viral—and caused untold harmMental Health Outcomes in Transgender and Nonbinary Youths Receiving Gender-Affirming Care'Rapid Onset Gender Dysphoria' Is Biased Junk ScienceA careful step into a field of landminesDetransition, Desistance, and Disinformation: A Guide for Understanding Transgender Children Debates Recognizing and responding to misleading trans health researchThanks to Doctor Dreamchip for our lovely theme song!
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April Bonus: Oprah's Ozempic Special
Oprah's got a new special about weight loss. Is it 1986? No, it's 2024 and we're watching "Blame, Shame and the Weight Loss Revolution"!
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Jamie Oliver
In the 2000s, Jamie Oliver made a big splash with his work reforming kids’ meals in the UK and US. Was his work wicked slammin’, or just proper rustic?
Support us:
Hear bonus episodes on PatreonDonate on PayPalGet Maintenance Phase T-shirts, stickers and moreBuy Aubrey's bookListen to Mike's other podcastLinks!
BBC Profile - Jamie OliverJamie Oliver Puts America's Diet on a DietAll The Times Jamie Oliver Made Everyone AngryUnpacking School Lunch: Understanding the Hidden Politics of School FoodA brief history of school meals in the UKTurkey Twizzlers: A Complete HistoryMarcus Rashford Is Fighting the Government on Free School Meals. He’s Also Fighting Jamie Oliver’s LegacyHas Jamie Bitten off More Than He Can Chew?Jamie Oliver, you haven’t tasted real povertyJamie Oliver’s campaign against childhood obesity has classist undertonesJamie’s jerk rice is a recipe for disasterThanks to Doctor Dreamchip for our lovely theme song!
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March Bonus: Plandemic!
Despite being almost 90 minutes long, our COVID Conspiracies episode covered just a fraction of the misinformation bouncing around the country in 2020. So to cover some of the viral myths and zombie statistics we didn't get to, we decided to have a little watch party for a coronavirus conspiracy classic: "Plandemic."
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COVID Conspiracies
What was missing from America's pandemic response? According to the internet, a sunshine vitamin, a malaria treatment and a whole lot of horse paste.
Thanks to Health Nerd (Substack) for helping us fact-check this episode! And thanks to Abby Mahler (Twitter, Tiktok) for help with the research on hydroxychloroquine!
Support us:
Hear bonus episodes on PatreonDonate on PayPalGet Maintenance Phase T-shirts, stickers and moreBuy Aubrey's bookListen to Mike's other podcastLinks:
How Musk Sold MAGA on HCQ Prominent Anti-Vaxxer’s Snake Oil Store Has a Propaganda OutletNine COVID-19 Myths That Just Won’t Go Away Disinformation and coronavirus COVID-19 Conspiracy Theories Discussion on Twitter Pain in the Nation Are patients with hypertension and diabetes mellitus at increased risk for COVID-19 infection? Conspiracy theories as barriers to controlling the spread of COVID-19 in the U.S. Vaccines vs. vitamins: COVID misinformation roils the worlds of wellness and nutrition A Decisive Verdict on Vitamin D Supplementation Why were Twitter Users Obsessed with Vitamin D during the first year of the pandemic? Vitamin D, the Sunshine Supplement, Has Shadowy Money Behind It The Truth about Vitamin D and COVID-19 The Strange and Twisted Tale of Hydroxychloroquine Is Ivermectin for Covid-19 Based on Fraudulent Research? Thanks to Doctor Dreamchip for our lovely theme song!
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February Bonus: Diets for your Brain!
Can someone's diet cure their schizophrenia? Of course not! But some real jerky psychologists & MDs in the '70s decided to tell people it could. This month, we're diving back into Aubrey's diet book collection—and this time, we're focusing on diets that claim to have psychological and behavioral effects. Buckle up, it's even more unhinged than you think!
Customer Reviews
Love it all!
Maintenance Phase is a gift to humanity as far as I’m concerned.
Good social commentary, poor scientific rigor
Let me start off by saying, I have listened to almost all of the episodes (I’m behind on a couple) and have even subscribed to get bonus content. I really do enjoy this podcast. I think Michael and Aubrey have great chemistry and are very funny. Overall very enjoyable to listen to.
I think they have very good takes on battling weight stigma and diet culture. I think where they excel is talking about the 90s diet fads, wellness scams and the historical systematic underfunding and under education of schools in regards to nutrition.
Where they do not excel however is talking about science and research. As self-proclaimed “methodology queens” they only seem interested in maligning the research that contradicts their worldview and ignore the very valid academic criticisms of the research that agrees with them. The obesity paradox is one of the main culprits of this. The link between obesity and health is not black and white, it’s not everything and it’s not nothing. It’s murky and nuanced.
For anyone thinking about listening I would still highly recommend this podcast with the stipulation that this is just one viewpoint of many. Do not get your entire worldview about health and wellness from this podcast alone. Look up the studies on pubmed, read their criticisms. Realize that the debunking is not absolute in every sense.
Could really be great
I have historically enjoyed this podcast….I have found the chemistry between the two hosts to be good, and the topics are interesting and often compelling. Often I have found them to be smart, informative, entertaining, and enjoyable to listen to for an hour or more as they covered topics of interest to me. I thought it started out strong in the beginning, but in the past year or so I feel like it has become formulaic and cheap.
First, shame on me, but I always accepted what Michael and Aubrey said as credible and believed it to be true. However, I have come to realize that much of what they have passed on as absolute truths were either way more complex than they presented, or at times, flat out wrong. I just don’t feel I can trust what they say as accurate anymore, and I have lost faith in their “research.”
They seem to be very black and white thinkers, and don’t seem to be able to (or interested in) recognizing nuance or complexity very well. They do not seem to be open or curious about other perspectives and dismiss the experiences of others as unimportant or uninformed, unless it fits perfectly in with their experience.
What has really turned me off the most is recognizing that they seem to be doing what social media does best….stoking and inflaming without good evidence, in a way that feels like the audience is being manipulated for reasons related to self-promotion. Honestly, the slant is different, but I listening to them makes me feel the same way I feel when I am exposed to Fox News….being manipulated and fed half-truths. They are dismissive and disrespectful of people who have concerns that don’t line up with theirs, and come across as patronizing and smug.
One of the things that drew me in initially was that they seemed compassionate and interested in reducing stigma and shame, but now they have been coming across as callous and dehumanizing. They often make mass generalizations and paint with broad strokes. I think I failed to notice it for a long time (or maybe it has gotten worse) because my values typically align with theirs, but they are….dare I say it….toxic. And often hypocritical, as they do to others they exact things they rail against themselves. Lots of potential, but these hosts are letting their listeners down.