Population Health Exchange
Free Associations
Free Associations is about using a critical eye when reading journal articles or news coverage about research breakthroughs. With a sense of humor and a healthy dose of skepticism Boston University School of Public Health Professors Matt Fox, Chris Gill, and Jennifer Rider talk us through popular health studies and hyperbolic news headlines while teaching us how to ask the right questions. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Author
Population Health Exchange
Category
Podcast website
Latest episode
Oct 30, 2025
Where to listen?
Podcasts in the app Replaio Radio Coming soonPodcasts are coming to the app soon. Install now and be the first to see a whole new take on podcasts
Episodes
Episode 56 - A breakthrough for sickle cell disease? 10.09.2019 55:34
Matt, Chris, and Don discuss a study on a new treatment for sickle cell disease, the gang discuss some advances in registered reports, and Matt figures out which celebrity he should publish a paper with. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 55 - Contraception and HIV risk 27.08.2019 58:07
Matt, Chris, and Don discuss a study on whether commonly used contraception increases HIV risk, the gang discuss how to improve the communication of science, and Don finally does standup comedy. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 54 - Smells like an associational study 13.08.2019 54:04
Matt, Chris, and Don discuss the relationship between ability to smell and mortality, the gang discuss the role that journals have to play in combatting false medical claims, and Matt explains his concerns about the future of sandwiches. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 53 - And I would walk 10,000 steps 30.07.2019 55:46
Matt, Chris, and Don determine whether you really need to walk 10,000 steps per day, the gang discuss a paper that had two discussion sections which came to two different conclusions, and Don enlightens us on whether couples look alike. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 52 - The best of Amazing and Amusing II 16.07.2019 52:54
Matt, Chris, and Don have been traveling recently so for this episode we bring you another collection of the best of Amazing and Amusing. Enjoy! Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 51 - Doc, you really need a medical scribe… 02.07.2019 51:35
Matt, Chris, and Don look at the impact of medical scribes on doctor productivity, the gang discuss a journal that only publishes unsurprising results, and Don grosses us out with facts about viruses. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 50 - Undetectable = untransmissible 18.06.2019 55:38
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a study of the risk of HIV transmission when a person is successfully taking HIV treatment (spoiler: the risk is 0), the gang discuss what a “risk factor” is, and Matt channels his inner Harry Potter. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 49 - Rebroadcast: A tough pill to swallow? 04.06.2019 54:21
As we are nearing our 50th episode we wanted to take a look back at one of our favorites. Enjoy this rebroadcast of the poop pill episode. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 48 - The social jetlag episode (it’s a thing) 21.05.2019 54:27
Matt, Chris, and Don look at how living on the wrong side of a time zone affects your health, the gang discuss when it might be ok to conduct a trial without patient consent, and Matt wines. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 47 - Cannabis use and psychosis 07.05.2019 55:03
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a study of the impact of cannabis use on psychosis, the gang discuss something called ethics dumping, and Chris goes on a rant about naked mole rats. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 46 - A breakthrough for postpartum depression? 23.04.2019 57:13
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a new treatment for postpartum depression, the gang discuss some statistical pitfalls in personalized medicine, and Chris schools us all on cat behavior. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 45 - Complementary medicine and cancer 09.04.2019 51:25
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a study of whether complementary medicines during cancer treatment impact survival, the gang discuss when it is ok to self-plagiarize, and Don has some breaking news about cheese. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 44 - Are we really talking about MMR and autism again? (still no link) 26.03.2019 55:25
Matt, Chris, and Don look at yet another study that found no link between the measles mumps rubella vaccine and autism, the gang discuss whether email is making us stupid (stupider?), and Matt has some news about beer. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 43 - What can we learn about asthma from the Amish? 12.03.2019 53:52
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a study among the Amish to look for causes of asthma, the gang discuss an update to Plan S, and Chris notices an interesting pattern around STI transmission. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 42 - Can e-cigarettes help people quit smoking? 26.02.2019 49:12
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a study that tested whether e-cigarettes are better than traditional approaches for helping people quit smoking, the gang discuss the value of “null” findings, and Matt has a message for cheaters. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 41 - Peanut allergy desensitization 12.02.2019 47:30
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a study of a desensitization treatment for those with peanut allergy, the gang discuss whether artificial intelligence will replace us, and Matt learns how quickly he can put us all to sleep with a boring conference talk. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 40 - A breakthrough for Alzheimer’s treatment? 29.01.2019 56:48
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a study that used an antibody to treat Alzheimer’s disease, the gang goes back to the well to talk about conflicts of interest, and Matt tells us the secret to good course evaluations! Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 39 - One week break: back in two weeks! 15.01.2019 1:21
We took a break from recording this week as we have a lot going on – the holidays, end of semester crunch, and Matt relocating for a 6 month sabbatical to the UK. We’ll be back in 2 weeks with another episode so tune in! Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 38 - Is ADHD over-diagnosed? 01.01.2019 1:01:58
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a study using month of birth to explore whether attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is over-diagnosed, the gang discusses a study on how patients feel about having their clinical trial data shared, and Don enlightens us on which Legos taste best. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 37 - Are organic foods the answer to cancer? 18.12.2018 1:01:43
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a study of the effects of eating organic foods on risk of cancer, the gang discusses the role of data safety and monitoring boards in clinical trials, and Matt gives his shortest amazing and amusing ever. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 36 - Herpes virus and dementia 04.12.2018 1:00:30
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a study of whether herpes virus is associated with dementia, the gang discusses a new database of retracted studies and what it tells us, and Don gives us the ICD10 codes we never knew we needed. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 35 - Is more better? The asthma dosing episode 20.11.2018 1:05:54
Matt, Chris, and Don look at two studies on asthma medication dosing, the gang discusses whether ad hominem attacks on science are more effective than attacks on the science itself, and Matt finally figures out which host is more popular. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 34 - The born to run episode: Exercise and mental health 06.11.2018 55:29
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a massive cross-sectional study on the relationship between exercise and mental health, the gang discusses whether critiquing science gives fodder to those who wish to dismiss science, and Don finally solves all our manuscript issues. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Episode 33 - The target trial episode: The case of diclofenac and cardiovascular disease 23.10.2018 58:29
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a study that used a unique approach, analyzing observational data like a randomized trial, to look at the effect of a common NSAID on cardiovascular disease, the gang discusses a study attempting (and often failing) to reproduce results originally published in Nature and Science, and Chris, yet again, finds a way to talk about bees. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY...
Episode 32 - The sleep episode: melatonin for a sleep disorder 09.10.2018 1:00:56
Matt, Chris, and Don look at a trial that focuses on whether melatonin can help people with a sleep disorder, the gang discusses a provocative editorial that says nutritional epidemiology is deeply flawed, and Chris learns the dangers of ignoring Matt’s emails. Music: "Duress" by Ketsa under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 .
Similar podcasts
Replaio is not a podcast publisher; show names, artwork and audio belong to their authors and are distributed through public RSS feeds.