America Dissected

Millions of Americans live with chronic pain. But we have yet to fully contend with the impact pain has on people–and our ability to treat pain remains limited. In fact, our failure to engage with the complexity of pain is, in part, what led to the opioid crisis, which took over 100,000 lives last year. One of those people living with chronic pain is Dr. Haider Warraich, a physician who’s written a book exploring pain as a biological and sociocultural phenomenon. He joins Abdul to talk about pain–what it is, how it shapes our society, and how people and their providers need to have a better conversation about it.For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected.

Food insecurity affects millions of Americans — a disproportionate number of them are Black. What are the consequences of the way we produce food in our society — and how do they shape who gets healthy, accessible, affordable food, and who doesn’t? Abdul reflects on our food system and speaks with Malik Yakini, co-founder and Executive Director of the Detroit Black Community Food Security Network.For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected.

Nearly four million people have left Ukraine since Putin invaded their country. They need housing, food, and work. But so do the million who’ve fled war in countries like Yemen, Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan. Abdul breaks down the public health consequences of forced migration. He then speaks with David Miliband, President and CEO of the International Rescue Committee about the refugee crisis in Ukraine and what drives our double standard for refugees.For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected.

Menstruation is a fundamental part of the physiology of nearly half of the people on Earth. But we don’t talk about it that way–it’s taboo, unspoken, and ignored. Period stigma has left state governments across the country taxing period products as “luxury” items, failing to provide access to period products as the necessities they are for low-income menstruators. In this episode, Abdul talks about how period stigma leaves people without the products they need to live their lives–and speaks with Lynette Medley, an inspiring activist working to solve that problem.For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected.

Online sports betting has exploded over the past few years as 18 states have legalized it. Already a $70 Billion market, it’s projected to double in the next five years. But what does the rise of online sports betting mean for people with gambling disorder? We speak with Prof. Tim Fong, a gambling addiction expert, about the consequences of online sports betting–and how we can protect vulnerable people.For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected.

Spring forward has taken all the spring out of my step. It’s even worse from my four year old who’s super confused about why she has to wake up an hour earlier every day. But beyond the annoyance and the lack of sleep, what are the long term health consequences of Daylight Savings Time? We speak with Dr. Adeel Rishi, lead author of a position paper from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine on Daylight Savings Time. For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected.

COVID really is over this time, right? Abdul reflects on the fact that public health is about what we do in the background when no one is paying attention–and how now is not the time for public health leaders to take a breather, but to get ahead of the next variant. Abdul sits down with Dr. Don Burke, a global infectious disease expert, to walk through various scenarios for where we go from here.For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected.

Who knew “take a hike” was really powerful health advice? Abdul reflects on the power of one of the most basic things humans can do. Then he speaks with Neuroscientist and author Shane O’Mara about his book “In Praise of Walking,” about the power of a walk, and why so many of us rediscovered it during the pandemic.For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected.

Too often, we focus on the disease that affect people rather than the people those diseases are affecting. That failure to pay attention to people lets the disease take more than their health, it lets it take their identities. But we can stop it. Prof. Celeste Watkins-Hayes studies the ways that women with HIV negotiate their illness and how it shapes their lives. She joins Abdul to talk about her work, her book “Remaking a Life,” and about what it can teach us about rethinking how we respond in times of health crises like COVID-19. For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected.

Public health requires us to believe that there is “a public” above and beyond ourselves as individuals. But who belongs to that public may matter even more for what we’re willing to do provide that public. In her book “The Sum of Us,” author and organizer Heather McGhee shows how racism has destroyed collective efforts–from swimming pools to insurance pools–in America. She joins Abdul to talk about what that means for public health and the pandemic.You can find "The Sum of Us," now in paperback, wherever you shop for books.For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected.