

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

Oct 21, 2019 • 33min
Sawbones: Ben Franklin
Ben Franklin may not have have been a doctor, but he still had a massive impact on the medical field in his time. What were his contributions? And was he ever actually president? You'll have to listen to find out! Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers

Oct 11, 2019 • 40min
Sawbones: The Hippocratic Oath
We've all heard about the oath new doctors have to take before they get their first scalpel and weird head mirror thing. But has it always been the same? Did Hippocrates really make it up? Is "First, do no harm" part of it? We'll answer all that and more on this week's Sawbones. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers

Oct 4, 2019 • 39min
Sawbones: National Hotel Disease
This week on Sawbones, Dr. Sydnee and Justin check in with National Hotel Disease, the diarrhea so bad it almost brought down a U.S. presidency. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers

Sep 27, 2019 • 36min
Sawbones: Essential Oils
This week on Sawbones, we talk about the many, many things essential oils can't do for you and the dueling Utah-based companies that insist we're wrong. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers

Sep 20, 2019 • 43min
Sawbones: Garlic
For thousands of years, throughout an unprecedented number of cultures, garlic has been touted for its ability to improve our health. How? Well, by warding off vampires, silly. ... OK, there's some other stuff too. You should probably just listen. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers

Sep 13, 2019 • 53min
Sawbones: Vaping
On Sawbones, we like to take a lot of hard lines and make grand proclamations: Vaccines good, viruses bad, that sort of thing. But when it comes to vaping, things get a little ... cloudier? Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers

Sep 9, 2019 • 42min
Sawbones: Hydrotherapy
Water: There's plenty of it, it's not obviously poisonous and it's cheap as all get out. Maybe THAT'S the answer to all our species' medical woes? ... It's not, but if you've ever listened to Sawbones before you see where this episode (recorded live in beautiful Atlanta) is going. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers

Aug 30, 2019 • 40min
Sawbones: The HPV Vaccine
A vaccine that can practically eliminate a type of human cancer should be cause for celebration across our species. Would it surprise it to learn that some people don't trust it? ... Probably not at this point, huh? This week on Sawbones: The HPV vaccine. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers

Aug 26, 2019 • 38min
Sawbones: Sneezing
Welcome to all the owners of human bodies! You're gonna love these things, they can run, jump ... and every once in a while they uncontrollably blast snot out of your face at 100 MPH. This week on Sawbones: Sneezing. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers

Aug 18, 2019 • 47min
Sawbones: Fever
Any species could have created a bunch of bogus ways to treat fevers. But only humans could use fevers as a bogus treatment for other stuff and then end up being sort of right about it. This week on Sawbones, we're burning down the house. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers