The Fate of Football (Players) with Garrett Bush
Last month, as millions watched a Monday Night Football game, Damar Hamlin, a safety on the Buffalo Bills football team, suffered a rare and potentially deadly injury while making a routine tackle. Abdul reflects on his complicated relationship with football. Then he interviews Garrett Bush, sports commentator and former college football player, who recently went viral over a rant about America’s sordid love affair with football.
7 Feb 20231h 2min
Cooking with Gas with Rebecca Leber
The rightwing ecosystem went up in flames a couple of weeks ago over gas stoves. Beyond the fact that burning stuff into our lungs is probably bad for us, this opposition to government action in the name of health may signal something broader–that emerging out of pandemic-era opposition to lockdowns, masks, and vaccines, the rightwing culture war is taking aim at public health more broadly. Abdul sits down with Vox journalist Rebecca Leber to understand what all the hot air is about, and what it means for the broader effort to protect folks in America.
31 Jan 202347min
Weight, Weight, Don’t Tell Me with Prof. Harriet Brown
Obesity has tripled since 1970. And since, it’s spawned all sorts of trends, ostensibly to help folks eat less, exercise more, and lose weight. But what is obesity, exactly? And is all this advice actually helping — or could it be doing more harm than good? Abdul reflects on weight, weight stigma, and the weightloss industrial complex. He sits down with Prof. Harriett Brown, author of “Body of Truth,” which digs deep into the evidence about weight and health and explores the consequences of weight stigma.
24 Jan 20231h 3min
Under the Skin with Linda Villarosa
People of color, and particularly Black folks, suffer higher rates of disease in America. That has less to do with anything about personal characteristics — like genetics or behaviors — and more to do with the way society treats people because of the color of their skin. In her new book “Under the Skin,” health journalist Linda Villarosa explores how racism gets under the skin. She sat down with Abdul to talk about that — and what we do about it.
17 Jan 202353min
Making Your Resolutions Stick with Prof. Katy Milkman
Imagine setting a New Year’s Resolution — and actually achieving it! Living healthier and losing weight accounts for more than 40% of all New Year’s resolutions. But actually achieving them? That’s a different story. To be sure, “personal fortitude” and “effort” pale in comparison to the role of place and resources when it comes to our health. But for so many of us, even when all the other variables line up, our goals feel a bit too daunting. Abdul reflects on what makes setting big goals so challenging — and why so many of us struggle with our health goals. Then he sits down with Professor Katy Milkman, a behavioral science professor at Penn’s Wharton School, and author of “How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be” to talk about the science of sticking to those New Year’s resolutions.
10 Jan 20231h
Holiday Mailbag!
The weather outside is frightful! But the fire is so delightful! Since we’ve no place to go … Abdul’s about to nerd out on all of your health & medicine questions. Here we go, here we go, here we go.
20 Dec 20221h 5min
Ellen Needs Insurance with Ellen Haun
Health insurance in America is anything but “sure.” Most Americans under Medicare age rely on their employment for their insurance — but that leaves millions of people struggling to get basic insurance, or worse, uninsured. Ellen Haun is an actor who was $804 short of what she needed to earn to be eligible for health insurance through her union. So to do just that, she decided to make a movie about … an actor trying to earn enough money to get health insurance. She sat down with Abdul to talk about her experience and what it says about America’s healthcare system.
13 Dec 202237min
Do you shower too much? with Dr. James Hamblin
What would happen if you just … stopped showering? After all, we spend way more time washing than our ancestors ever did. Abdul reflects on the way the soap industry has created demand for its products by playing on our insecurities. Then he interviews Dr. James Hamblin, a preventive medicine doctor and author of the book “Clean: The New Science of Skin and the Beauty of Doing Less” about what he learned by not showering. You can find a full transcript of this episode at https://crooked.com/podcast/america-dissected
6 Dec 202250min
