

Sawbones: A Marital Tour of Misguided Medicine
Justin McElroy, Dr. Sydnee McElroy
Join Dr. Sydnee McElroy and her husband Justin McElroy for a tour of all the dumb, bad, gross, weird and wrong ways we've tried to fix people.
Episodes
Mentioned books

8 snips
Jul 19, 2022 • 39min
Hand Sanitizer
Around the early 1900s, it was discovered that a high percent of ethanol was useful for killing germs, and worked great if there was no available soap and water. Dr. Sydnee and Justin go through viral internet stories and odd patents to explain how we eventually landed on the hand sanitizer we know and love today. Hey, if you can, though, wash your hands.Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Jul 5, 2022 • 45min
Answering Your Questions About the Roe Verdict
The overturning of Roe has created an astounding number of questions and problems, and the fact is that we don’t know for sure how the landscape will change in the next few years or even months. This week, Dr. Sydnee uses the best available information to answer listener questions about what the Roe decision means for those seeking medical care related to pregnancy, including the morning after pill, vasectomies as contraception, and ectopic pregnancies.Addendum: There is a prescription form of emergency contraception called Ella that may be more effective in larger bodies. Speak to your primary care physician for more information.Resources:Abortion On Our Own Terms: https://abortiononourownterms.org/https://apiaryps.org/https://www.abortionfinder.org/Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Jun 28, 2022 • 39min
Radium Girls
Back in 1917 radium was all the rage. The fact that it glowed made people believe it was healthy and important, so they included it in things like toothpaste, cosmetics, even water. The Radium Girls, factory workers who used radium-laced paints to detail watch faces, were among the first to indicate that it may not be as safe as we imagined. Charlie McElroy is here to tell us about their fight for workplace safety.Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Jun 22, 2022 • 41min
Vomiting
What’s the deal with vomiting? Justin and Dr. Sydnee meditate on the various ways we get nauseated, from smelling something gross to getting hit in a sensitive spot, and what we’ve done over the years to help alleviate it. Although sometimes kids just vomit for no reason and we can’t really help you there.Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Jun 7, 2022 • 38min
Is it Safe to Eat This Plutonium?
We’re back with Sawbones Medical Questions! Justin acts as stand-in for the listeners while Dr. Sydnee answers questions about tall people getting COVID, eye goop, nose goop, labor organizing in the medical field, and corn in poop. This one’s for the Sawboners. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

May 31, 2022 • 41min
Monkeypox
You may be worried we’re headed into another global health crisis in the form of Monkeypox. But it’s not new, and we already know quite a bit about it. Dr. Sydnee explains what it is, how to treat it, and the recommendations at the moment from the CDC, all compared to COVID (which is now unfortunately our standard for how to relate to potential public health threats).Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

29 snips
May 24, 2022 • 47min
History of Abortion
With the recent news about Roe v. Wade, it’s important to talk about the history of abortion in the United States. The right to autonomy over one’s own body in regard to medical care is one of the basic tenets of medical ethics; but no matter what anyone personally believes, banning abortion doesn’t stop abortion. It just makes it unsafe.Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

May 17, 2022 • 47min
Infant Formula
The United States is currently in a dire formula shortage, and people are taking to the internet to propose some less than ideal solutions. Dr. Sydnee talks about the origins of how formula came about, how the shortage came about, and why people on the internet are wrong. And just in case you miss the message: do NOT try to make your own formula.Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

May 3, 2022 • 35min
Harry Beno: The Poison King
Harry Beno (not BEAN-o) one day walked into a barn hungry for biscuits and emerged the poison king. Believing himself immune to strychnine, Beno took to eating poison for an audience. From there his act escalated to the next logical step, hammering nails into his head and burying himself alive. Justin and Dr. Sydnee tell the story of “Beno the Wonder” who confused doctors but couldn’t escape the ultimate Sawbones lesson: don’t drill a hole in your head.Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Apr 26, 2022 • 40min
Testicle Tanning
Some people believe that men in the world are getting softer and masculinity is under attack. But not to worry, there’s a solution: tanning your . . . nethers. Although the idea of exposing your soft bits to the sun may be embarrassing, there's also, as Dr. Sydnee explains, zero evidence that it's beneficial.Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/