America Dissected
Incision Media LLC
Wellness isn’t just about mindfulness, exercise, or the right skin routine. Science, politics, media, culture, tech — everything around us — interact to shape our health. On America Dissected, Drs. Abdul El-Sayed and Katelyn Jetelina cuts into what really makes us sick — be it racism, corporate greed, or snake oil influencers — and what it'll take to heal it. From for-profit healthcare to ineffective sunscreens, America Dissected cuts deeper into the state of health in America. New episodes every Thursday. Want to know where to start? Here are some fan-favorite episodes to search: Cannabis Capitalism with David Jernigan; Weight Weight Don’t Tell me with Harriett Brown; Black Scientists Matter with Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Apr 5, 2022 • 49min
Seeking Refuge with David Miliband
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.
Mar 29, 2022 • 25min
Period Poverty with Lynette Medley
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.
Mar 22, 2022 • 41min
Bracket Buster with Prof. Tim Fong
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.
Mar 15, 2022 • 35min
Daylight Shavings Time with Dr. Muhammad Adeel Rishi
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.
Mar 8, 2022 • 37min
State of the Pandemic with Dr. Don Burke
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.
Mar 1, 2022 • 35min
On the Beaten Path with Dr. Shane O’Mara
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.
Feb 22, 2022 • 43min
People > Pathology with Prof. Celeste Watkins-Hayes
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.
Feb 15, 2022 • 36min
The Sum of Us are Sick with Heather McGhee
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.
Feb 8, 2022 • 39min
The Black Maternal Health Caucus with Rep. Lauren Underwood
One of the most galling examples of inequity in America continues to be the stunningly high rate at which Black mothers die in pregnancy and childbirth and Black babies die before during their first year of life. Abdul reflects on how structural inequity continues to take mothers’ and babies’ lives. Then he talks to Rep. Lauren Underwood, Chair of the Black Maternal Health Caucus and sponsor of the “Momnibus” package to eliminate these disparities.Baby 2 Baby: https://baby2baby.org/Star Legacy Foundation: https://starlegacyfoundation.org/BabyQuest Foundation: https://babyquestfoundation.org/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected.
Feb 1, 2022 • 39min
The Court of Public Vaccination w/ Prof. Melissa Murray
Your right to swing your first ends where my face starts. That principle captures the limits of our freedoms in this country. And the Supreme Court has long held the precedent that people could be required to be vaccinated to protect the public from disease. But a recent ruling against workplace vaccine mandates may upend that. We speak with Prof. Melissa Murray, NYU Law professor and host of “Strict Scrutiny,” a podcast about the supreme court, about that, the retirement of Justice Breyer, and more.For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected.
