What's Up Docs?

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken untangle the confusion around every aspect of our health and wellbeing. This week, Chris and Xand meet Dr James Rucker, a consultant psychiatrist at King's College London who is leading the European arm of a global trial of a psychedelic called psilocybin in a study designed to treat people with s...

Chris and Xand continue their conversation about fibre with Dr Deirdre Tobias, an obesity and nutritional epidemiologist at the Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, USA. Together, they dig further into the relationship between our fibre intake and our microbiome. Plus, they delve into some of the socioeconomic aspects of increasing our intake of fibre. If you’d like t...

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken clear up the confusion around every aspect of our health and wellbeing. In this episode, they want to answer some of the most important questions about dietary fibre. What is it and why do our bodies need it? They’ll explore the best sources of fibre - both natural and processed - and unpack the g...

Drs Chris and Xand van Tulleken continue their conversation with Dr Mindy Cairns, Specialist Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist and Associate Professor at the University of Hertfordshire. They discuss how mental health issues can contribute to back pain, what women can do to manage back pain during pregnancy, and the difficulties of living with long-term back pain alongside other medical conditions....

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken tackle the confusion around every aspect of our health and wellbeing. On the agenda this week is back pain. It’s a condition that will affect around 80% of us at some point during our lives, with low back pain being the single leading cause of disability worldwide. Joining Chris and Xand in the st...

Chris and Xand continue their conversation with Professor Stella Volpe, head of the department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in the United States. They talk to Stella about her work as a sports nutritionist, specialising in diabetes and obesity, about whether athletes need to think about magnesium differently, and the relationship be...

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken cut through the confusion around health and wellbeing. In this episode, the Doctors turn their attention to the mineral of the moment - magnesium. Hyped up on social media, Chris and Xand want to dig into the different roles magnesium plays in regulating the human body, what happens when we’re def...

Chris and Xand are back with a bonus episode, as they continue their conversation with Dr Chi Eziefula, Associate Professor in Global Health and Infection and menstrual health expert. They talk about how menstrual health is covered in medical school, delve further into the stigma that still surrounds it, and what institutions are doing - or not doing - about it. If you’d like to share your thought...

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken cut through the confusion around health and wellbeing. In this episode, the Doctors turn their attention to the menstrual cycle. Menstrual health and periods are still surrounded by myths, misunderstandings and stigma. So what are we getting wrong? They're interested in understanding what the mens...

Sshhh! Drs Chris and Xand van Tulleken are back to hear more about noise in this episode of Doctors’ Notes. Continuing their conversation with Charlotte Clark, Professor of Environmental Epidemiology at City St George’s, University of London, they dig deeper into the science around environmental noise and its damaging effects on our health and wellbeing. Charlotte tells Chris and Xand about her re...

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken cut through the noise around every aspect of our health and wellbeing. This week, Chris and Xand speak to Professor Charlotte Clark, Environmental Epidemiologist at City St George’s, University of London. She explains how being exposed to transport noise over long periods of our life can have disa...

Urine for a treat in this week’s Doctors’ Notes, as Drs Chris and Xand van Tulleken continue their fascinating conversation with Dr Kate Bramham, Consultant Nephrologist at King’s College Hospital and Reader at King's College London. In this bonus episode, the Docs delve into the issue of chronic kidney disease and why some communities are disproportionately affected by it. They also explore the e...

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken tackle the confusion around every aspect of our health and wellbeing. Chris and Xand have always found the kidneys somewhat mysterious and elusive, going all the way back to medical school. Now they want to understand what makes this pair of organs so complex, and why they are so much more than si...

Chris and Xand continue their discussion with Dr Yusur Al-Nuaimi, Consultant Dermatologist at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital and Clinical Lead for the British Hair and Nail Society. They dive deeper into the science of nails and the vital clues they can provide about a plethora of serious health conditions. Plus, Yusur tells Chris and Xand about what first piqued her interest in dermatology,...

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken tackle the confusion around every aspect of our health and wellbeing. This week, Chris and Xand are exploring the topic of nail health. As well as being useful tools on our hands and feet, nails can also be important signs of many diseases and disorders. But what exactly is a nail made of? How did...

Chris and Xand continue their conversation with Professor Sophie Scott CBE, a leading expert in the neuroscience of laughter from University College London. They explore what sets real laughter apart from fake, how children pick up the habit of laughing, and whether faking a laugh can make you feel better. Plus, they ask Sophie how she first became interested in laughter research. If you’d like to...

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken cut through the confusion around health and wellbeing. In this episode, the Doctors turn their attention to laughter. You’ve probably heard the phrase 'laughter is the best medicine', but have you ever wondered if there’s actually any science behind that? Can a good belly laugh really help with st...

In this episode, Chris and Xand continue to explore the power of saying 'no', this time focussing on defiance in parenting and childhood. They’re joined by behavioural scientist and physician Dr Sunita Sah from Cornell Univeristy. If you want to get in touch, you can email us at whatsupdocs@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 08000 665 123. Presenters: Drs Chris and Xand van Tulleken Guest: Dr Sunita Sah...

Why is it so hard to say no? Whether it’s at work, with family, or in everyday social situations, many of us find ourselves saying yes when we really want to say no, then paying the price later in stress, burnout, or resentment. In this programme, the doctors explore the psychology behind our reluctance to turn things down, and how we can become more comfortable protecting our boundaries. They’re...

Chris and Xand take an extra caffeine shot as they continue their conversation with Professor Andy Smith, an Occupational and Health Psychologist at Cardiff University. Can caffeine really boost sports performance and if so, by how much? Why is caffeine so dangerous when mixed with alcohol? And what were the 'caffeine wars'? If you’d like to share your thoughts on this or any other topic covered o...

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken untangle the confusion around every aspect of our health and wellbeing. This week, Chris thinks he has seen a hack to optimise his caffeine intake, but will it stack up? To find out if there is any evidence behind Chris’ theory, the Docs have a stimulating conversation with Andy Smith, Professor o...

Chris and Xand continue their conversation about tanning with Dr Rachel Abbott, Consultant Dermatologist at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff. They discuss the role of skin tone in tanning and also why it is that some people burn more than others. They also discuss the cultural perception of tanning and what it means for our health and habits. If you’d like to share your thoughts on this...

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken clear up the confusion around every aspect of our health and wellbeing. In this episode, the Doctors turn their attention to tanning. As sun-lovers themselves, Chris and Xand know there’s a lot of confusion surrounding how to tan safely - if that’s even possible. In today’s episode they’re weighin...

Chris and Xand return with a bonus episode, continuing their discussion with physiotherapist James Moore about which exercises to do for our core, how often to do them, and why core strength is crucial for the rest of our bodies. If you’d like to share your thoughts on this or any other topic covered on the podcast, you email us at whatsupdocs@bbc.co.uk or Whatsapp on 08000 665 123. Presenters: Dr...

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken explore core issues around every aspect of our health and wellbeing. In today’s episode, the Doctors explore core strength. When most people think of a “strong core”, they picture sculpted six-pack abs - but there’s much more beneath the surface. Chris and Xand will unpack the real meaning of core...