A Practical Guide to Terrible Decisions

The Great Stink of 1858 has highlights from some of the Sawbones Greatest Hits: the controversy of hand washing, the miasma theory of disease. and cholera. Which is all to say: it took humanity a long time to figure out that we shouldn't be drinking poop. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/ Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://...

We wanted to share a little teaser of our MaxFunDrive Bonus Content, so here's a short clip of Dr. Sydnee and Charlie addressing kid medical questions. If you want to hear the whole thing, head over to maximumfun.org/join to get access to this, plus the bonus content from MaxFunDrives past. Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones Beco...

Dr. Sydnee and Justin go through the marvelous Marvel Anatomy book, which explains how many comic book heroes' superpowers work. Where does the Hulk's strength come from? How does Spider-Man climb walls? How does Captain Marvel shoot energy out of her hands? And is any of it anatomically or medically plausible at all? Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/ Help support...

Lice aren’t just a longtime annoyance of school aged kids, they’ve actually been around longer than people. Dr. Sydnee and Justin talk about the history of trying to get rid of these creatures as well as some common misconceptions. Be warned: your head will be itchy during this episode. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/ Help support this show and unlock bonus cont...

It's another Sawbones: Medical Questions, and we're gonna go full Galaxy Brain on these listener-submitted queries. What is methalated B-12? Can my appendix grow back and give me appendicitis ad infinitum? Does sugar help tongue burns or is it just tasty? And most importantly, how do I tell my friend to stop listening to TikTok for medical advice? Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpay...

People have been dying of the inflammation of the appendix long before anyone even knew what this little finger-like organ was good for. Dr. Sydnee goes through the history of the first accidental appendix removal, to the long journey to figuring the true cause of abdominal distress. And most importantly: What's the one place where you MUST have your appendix removed before visiting? Music: "Medic...

There are lots of things that aren’t medicine. Taxes. Pound cake. One thing that is definitely not a medicine but at a time was thought as one? Ketchup! Dr. Sydnee goes through ketchup’s journey from a fermented non-tomato condiment to the condiment we know and love, including its brief stint as Dr. Miles’ Extract of Tomato. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/ Help...

Dr. Sydnee and Justin don't actually like grapefruits, so it's irrelevant to them, but grapefruit juice is known to interact poorly with many medications. Given the wide variety of fruits and their juices, it seems strange this is such an outlier. How was this anomaly discovered, and why exactly does it do what it does? Atlas Obscura article, "Grapefruit is One of the Weirdest Fruits on the Planet...

Have you ever been interrupted on a college campus by someone asking about your latest incident of intimate kissing? That's because they were trying to track the spread of a common infection called mononucleosis, or mono. Dr. Sydnee goes over the history of how the virus that caused mono was tracked down, and how it's tested for now. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.c...

If you're like Dr. Sydnee and your TikTok algorithm keeps advertising medical substances at you, perhaps you've heard of asafoetida. It's a pungent resin derived from a plant, and has culinary appeal as well as reportedly some medical benefits. But what, if any, research and evidence do we have about these medicinal claims? And most importantly, what does it really smell like? We need to know, for...

In 2001, the United States was under a biological attack from strange spores in mailed envelopes. This is a lot of people's first introduction to anthrax, a bacteria often associated with both domestic and wild animals. But what is anthrax, how is it spread, and where did it come from? To clarify, this episode is about the disease, not the metal band. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://ta...

The Sawbones Medical Quiz is back and better than ever, with questions about this past year's episodes! What have you learned about bad fast food, Senate contenders, pirate medicine, and owls? Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/ Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones Become a supporter of this podcast:...

It's the last episode of the year, so Dr. Sydnee and Justin set out to answer your important medical questions! How do oral probiotics prevent a yeast infection (or do they)? What's that medicine and Sprite combo you drink before a CT scan? Should I talk to the students who practice appointments on me? And does everyone rub their limbs together like a cricket before bed, or is it just Justin? Musi...

Parts of the US are currently in the midst of a triple-demic, a very scary phrase, so Dr. Sydnee is here to break down the third illness: Respiratory Syncytial Virus, or RSV. It’s a virus that’s common among everyone, but can be dangerous for some people. Dr. Sydnee and Justin talk about what it is, why it is suddenly prevalent in adults, and what can be done to help prevent the spread (hint: wear...

This week, Justin takes the wheel and finally gets to talk about farts, only tangentially in a medical way. Get ready for some fart etymology, some notable farts in medieval history, fun fart facts, and a little bit about preventing and treating excessive gas and flatulence. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/   Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Becom...

In the third and final chapter of the pirate medicine series, Dr. Sydnee and Justin talk about the dreaded Flux. What is the Flux? Well, it involves something coming out of your body in excess . . . and it's not urine. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/ Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones Become a...

In the second entry in the pirate medicine series, Dr. Sydnee talks about the practice of treating burns aboard a ship. It seems like burns on a ship would not be a problem, but ships are made of wood, and fire + wood = bad. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/ Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones Bec...

To celebrate the first new live Sawbones shows since 2020, we're releasing the first in a three-part series exploring the vast array that pirates—in an extremely resource and knowledge-limited setting—tried to keep one another alive through the years. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/ Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maxi...

Have you ever wanted to ask a real doctor questions that aren’t really advice? Dr. Sydnee answers listener questions about infecting yourself with a virus, refusing opioids, and difficult veins. And don’t worry - there are some poop questions as well. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/ Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maxi...

Why not just connect the spiritual and scientific world? That's basically what anthroposophy asks, teaching a philosophical approach to medicine. Dr. Sydnee and Justin talk about the history of this movement and also try to explain what exactly it is. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/ Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maxi...

The eyes are the windows to the soul, but could they also be the windows to all the body's ailments? Dr. Sydnee and Justin discuss iridology, the idea that changes in the eye color could possibly indicate different diseases and conditions – and perhaps even personality traits – although there is very little evidence that any of this is scientifically sound. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers http...

There are many people who have been recurring characters on Sawbones. Pliny the Elder. Charlie. But few so notorious as Dr. Mehmet Oz, now running for the U.S. Senate. This isn’t a commentary on his political fitness; just an examination of his history of questionable medical advice and pop-science claims. CW: Discussion of dieting and weight lossMusic: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpaye...

Is schizophrenia the same as having a dissociative identity? Or anti-social disorder? Or being a murderer? No. No. All of these are wrong. Dr. Sydnee breaks down one of the most misunderstood and maligned mental illnesses and how our understanding of symptoms and treatment have changed over the years. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/ Help support this show and un...

Podcast history is being made here: There are TWO Justin McElroys in this week's episode. We are joined by Justin McElroy, CBC reporter of municipal affairs in Vancouver and British Columbia, as he discusses his role reporting COVID data over the last two and a half years, and the challenges of presenting that information as people seem to be moving on from caring about the pandemic. Music: "Medic...

From our earliest days of life E. coli is among us and within us, living in harmony with the rest of our colonic flora. But this week we're here to discuss the multi-dimensional E. coli's ability to really mess all that up through contaminated romaine and undercooked cheeseburgers. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers  https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/ Help support this show and unlock bonus content!...