This Podcast Will Kill You

By: iHeartPodcasts
  • Summary

  • This podcast might not actually kill you, but Erin Welsh and Erin Allmann Updyke cover so many things that can. In each episode, they tackle a different topic, teaching listeners about the biology, history, and epidemiology of a different disease or medical mystery. They do the scientific research, so you don’t have to. Since 2017, Erin and Erin have explored chronic and infectious diseases, medications, poisons, viruses, bacteria and scientific discoveries. They’ve researched public health subjects including plague, Zika, COVID-19, lupus, asbestos, endometriosis and more. Each episode is accompanied by a creative quarantini cocktail recipe and a non-alcoholic placeborita. Erin Welsh, Ph.D. is a co-host of the This Podcast Will Kill You. She is a disease ecologist and epidemiologist and works full-time as a science communicator through her work on the podcast. Erin Allmann Updyke, MD, Ph.D. is a co-host of This Podcast Will Kill You. She’s an epidemiologist and disease ecologist currently in the final stretch of her family medicine residency program. This Podcast Will Kill You is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including science, true crime, comedic interviews, news, pop culture and more. Podcasts on the network include My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, Buried Bones, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast and more.
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Episodes
  • Ep 164 Rift Valley Fever: Ruminating on ruminants
    Feb 4 2025

    Hemorrhagic virus? Check. Deadly disease? Check. Mosquito-borne? Check. Affected by animal movement, human activity, and environmental change? Check. Rift Valley Fever has all the markings of a classic TPWKY episode. This week, we’re doing a deep dive on this deadly virus, taking a One Health approach to explore the intricate relationships between animals, humans, and the environment to understand how this virus moves across the landscape. We trace the various paths this virus takes: through the organisms it infects, across the globe as it spreads, and over time as it appears to be evolving to be deadlier. Tune in to learn more about Rift Valley fever and what we might see with this pathogen in the years to come.

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    1 hr and 15 mins
  • Ep 163 Circadian Rhythm: Live from Perth, Australia
    Jan 28 2025

    We are coming at you with our very first live episode from Perth, Australia! Here at the 2024 Australian Institute of Occupational Hygienists Annual Scientific Conference and Exhibition, occupational hazards and exposures get top billing. And one of the most ubiquitous hazards, experienced by nearly every industry is fatigue, specifically fatigue caused by circadian rhythm disruption. In this very special episode, we explore how our circadian rhythms work and some of the consequences that can emerge when we work against those rhythms, whether that’s because we’re traveling across many time zones or switching to night shift work. We then dig into the history of circadian rhythm research, from how we first learned about these daily patterns to when their disruption became a routine occurrence. Helping us to navigate some of the alarmist headlines (“your screens are ruining your sleep!”) and biohacker claims (“avoid jet lag with this one simple trick!”) is Ian Dunican, PhD. Dr. Dunican is the Director and Chief Adviser of Melius Consulting, a scientific consultancy undertaking research, consulting, and education, and he also hosts and produces the Sleep4Performance podcast. We also bring on Dr. John Iliff, Emergency Physician and Aeromedical Consultant to share his frightening experience with fatigue after a long shift during his training as a physician. Tune in for a fascinating discussion about the rhythms that drive our lives!

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    1 hr and 12 mins
  • Special Episode: Robert Alpert, Merle Eisenberg, Lee Mordechai & Diseased Cinema
    Jan 21 2025

    Everyone’s got a favorite disease movie. What’s yours? Does it feature zombies like 28 Days Later (2002), or is it more grounded in reality, like Contagion (2011)? Does it end with a glimmer of hope or with a dose of despair? Who are the bad guys and who are the good guys? From the early days of disease movies like Panic in the Streets (1950) to more recent films like Little Joe (2019), these movies have provided endless entertainment, excitement, and opportunities to examine society itself. In this TPWKY book club episode, Robert Alpert, Dr. Merle Eisenberg, and Dr. Lee Mordechai join us to discuss their book Diseased Cinema: Plagues, Pandemics, and Zombies in American Movies. Diseased Cinema approaches the genre of disease-themed movies with the goal of understanding what these movies say about our hopes, our fears, our anxieties, and how these perspectives have shifted over the decades. When did faith in our government’s problem solving give way to rugged self-reliance? Why did people start to view science as the bad guy rather than the source of salvation? Tune in for a fascinating discussion that will stay on your mind long after your next movie night. And also check out Merle and Lee’s excellent podcast Infectious Historians!

    Support this podcast by shopping our latest sponsor deals and promotions at this link: https://bit.ly/3WwtIAu

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    46 mins

Featured Article: Go Beyond the Lab with the Best Science Podcasts for Curious Listeners


Our picks for the best science podcasts run the gamut from general scientific trivia to earth science, outer space, food, plants, the human body, and much more. They're all accessible—any listener can learn about scientific history, breaking science news, and visions for the future from these shows, which often feature interviews with a variety of interesting experts who provide valuable insight, perspective, context, and clarity.

What listeners say about This Podcast Will Kill You

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Love it!

This podcast is so entertaining and informative! I’m learning and laughing so much every time I listen.

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learning without working

Super interesting topics. love the format. I am learning so much and I am not even trying.

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Infectious podcast!

There’s nothing quite like getting to deep dive into all these infectious diseases without having to do any of the challenging research. Thanks for sharing your hard work, Erin and Erin!

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My favorite podcast

I love this fun and informative pod! I always learn a lot about biology and history. The narrators ("the Erin's," since they're both named Erin) are funny and thoughtful.

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This is a great podcast! Educational and Sassy

These two women are smart, funny and I've learned so much about topics I'm not sure I wanted to know.. with their fascinating focus on Poop, Diseases, Poison, and basically everything under the sun, clearly these two are scientists and their repartee is hilarious. I'm going to be binging all 150 episodes now!

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Well Rounded Excellence

So far I am a fan of the Erin and Erin. It’s fun to listen to the banter and wealth of information. They both sound like empathetic and wonderfully intelligent women. I have started from the first episode and am working my way up. Thank you for the entertaining education.

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Fascinating and Funny

(long time listener on a different platform)
This podcast might just be my #1 favorite! Very well researched, with detailed explanations of biological mechanisms and processes as well as great storytelling when it comes to the historical side of things. I love the genuine enthusiasm with which the Erins talk about all these horrible pathogens (because yes, they ARE FASCINATING) and the occasional anger about the mistreatment of people in the name of medicine over the course of its history.

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i'm infected!!

i love these 2 knuckleheads. so smart so organized. open to correction. witty and delighfully "cool"! gross, empathic, great describes of details when needed and enough reviewing i don't get lost in all the great info. and they love this material and now i do too! you go girls!!

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Great topics

Well researched and interesting topics told in a fun way. Just the right balance of science and history.

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Favorite

I've loved every episode, even if I rarely listen through the audible app. Master storytelling and interesting topics.

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