Sawbones: A Marital Tour of Misguided Medicine - podcast cover

Sawbones: A Marital Tour of Misguided Medicine

Justin McElroy, Dr. Sydnee McElroymaximumfun.org
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.
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Episodes

Sawbones: Ignaz Semmelweis

This week on Sawbones, it's the fascinating, inspiring and infuriating story of Ignaz Semmelweis. You'll learn how he discovered why it was so important for doctor's to wash their hands and why it took so long for doctors to believe him. Music : "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Apr 03, 202042 minEp. 318

Sawbones: Masks

The COVID-19 outbreak has recently pushed masks and other protective equipment into the forefront of the global conversation, especially as a shortage threatens medical professionals on the front lines. This week on Sawbones, how masks changed the world of medicine, and what happens when there aren't enough to go around. Music : "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Mar 30, 202046 minEp. 317

Sawbones: Coronavirus Part 2

Surprise! This week our medical history podcast is about the biggest medical history event in any of our lifetimes. Let's talk about home testing! Social distancing! And some reflections from Sydnee after a week at the hospital. Music : "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Mar 22, 202047 minEp. 316

Sawbones: Revenge of the Weird Medical Questions

Once again, we're putting Justin at peril of being supremely yucked out by your weirdest medical queries: Should your pee smell so good? Why is your earwax that color? Why did your mom choose the name Fred for that blood-filled lump on her leg? Yup, it's a weird one, folks. Music : "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Mar 13, 202040 minEp. 315

Sawbones: How Yellow Fever (Nearly) Destroyed Philadelphia

This week on Sawbones, it's the story of how Yellow Fever killed 10 percent of Philadelphia, destroyed the government and made everyone rethink their collection of decorative standing water. Music : "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Mar 06, 202039 minEp. 314

Sawbones: Quarantine

For reasons we assume you can guess, we're discussing the history of quarantine, and how its historical misuse should make you particularly alert in the days and weeks to come as the world continues to combat COVID-19. Music : "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Mar 02, 202045 minEp. 313

Sawbones: William Cunningham and the Ghouls of Cincinnati

We love grave robbers on Sawbones and ... well, that came out wrong. We don't have a particular affinity for today's grave robbers, but they've played an important role in medical research and ... we're still defending grave robbers, aren't we? OK, listen. Let's start over. This is an episode about a really bad grave robber. Music : "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Feb 24, 202031 minEp. 312

Sawbones: Laudable Pus

This week on Sawbones, it's the truly embarrassing story of why we spent several centuries thinking it was important for us to make wounds as pus-filled as possible. There's no nice way of saying it folks: This is a gross one. Music : "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Feb 17, 202035 minEp. 311

Sawbones: Body Temperature

This week on Sawbones, things are getting hot! Well, no, come to think of it, they’re doing the opposite. They’re getting colder. And by “they” we mean “we.” We’re getting colder, all of us. Probably. What should you do about it? Nothing. For now, you’ll just have to -- wait for it -- chill. Music : "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Feb 10, 202043 minEp. 310

Sawbones: Coronavirus

This week on Sawbones, we've got a no-panic-allowed history of coronavirus along with a guide to the current strain that has held the headlines in a stranglehold in the past weeks. Even if you don't listen to the episode, take heart: If you're outside of China, it's likely you're more scared than you need to be at the moment. Music : "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Feb 02, 202043 minEp. 309

Sawbones: IV Cocktails

Would it surprise you to learn that people with too much money are flocking to "IV bars" and paying hundreds of dollars for intravenous cocktails of vitamins that are supposed to treat every malady under the sun but do absolutely nothing except risk serious infection? ... It probably doesn't surprise you, does it? Yeah, us neither. God, that's depressing. Anyway, here's a podcast. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maxi...

Jan 24, 202046 minEp. 307

Sawbones: Viking's Disease

This week on Sawbones, we celebrate a trip to Minnesota with an exploration of Viking's Disease. You'll meet the people it isn't really named for and the guy who beat out a long line of researchers to get it named after himself. It's a whole thing. You'll see. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Jan 19, 202036 minEp. 306

Sawbones: Bidets

We bidets have been all the rage for years around the globe, they never really caught on in the U.S. What part of their seedy history kept them out of American homes? And what (if any) are their health benefits? We've got all that and more on the new Sawbones! Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Jan 10, 202049 minEp. 305

Sawbones: The Chicago River Reversal

This week on Sawbones, the incredible true story of how Chicago changed the direction of a river to battle typhoid and cholera. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones

Dec 28, 201935 minEp. 304

A Medicine Called Christmas 2: A Royal Pain

Just in time for Christmas, we've got another extremely special holiday film created by Justin and Sydnee McElroy. Gather the family and prepare for A Medicine Called Christmas 2: A Royal Pain. NARRATOR: Rachel McElroy PHIL: Griffin McElroy TAB: Sydnee McElroy JESUS: Dwight Slappe SORIANO: Travis McElroy CHRIS: Justin McElroy WAITER: Michael Meadows MR. BIG CITY: Tommy Smirl BETH: Teylor Smirl MANDY: Rileigh Smirl QUEEN: Mary Smirl SANTA: Clint McElroy Help support this show and unlock bonus con...

Dec 22, 201939 minEp. 303

Sawbones: Elderberry and Other Things That Don't Prevent the Flu

You may have seen a Facebook meme claiming that a combination of elderberry and Oscillococcinum can prevent the flu. The truth of the matter may surprise you! (unless you've ever in your life ever listened to even a single episode of our show) Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Dec 13, 201943 minEp. 302

Sawbones: Taint Tanning and Heliotherapy

Listen, we're not gonna sit here all fancy and act like we didn't just record an entire episode about people sunning their buttholes. That's what happened, nothing can change that. If you don't listen, it was for nothing. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Dec 06, 201941 minEp. 301

Sawbones: Yes Virginia, There Are More Medical Questions

We're marking our 300th episode (OK, it's our 301st) by answering all of your pressing medical questions. Can you really poke your brain through your nose? Where do boob crumbs come from? Listen for that and so much more! Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Dec 01, 201941 minEp. 300

Sawbones: The Man Behind the Knick

This week on the 300th (!) episode of Sawbones, meet William Halstead, the father of American surgery, the man who inspired Cinemax's The Knick and ... a great advocate for cocaine. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones

Nov 25, 201933 minEp. 299

Sawbones: Food Sensitivity Testing

The market is flooded with at-home tests that let you "take medical care into your own hands" but is that something you even want in your hands? Are they reliable? Also, is Justin really going to give up cereal? Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones

Nov 15, 201945 minEp. 298

Sawbones: Auto-Brewery Syndrome

On Sawbones, we take pride in our ability to detangle medical myth from fact and give you the truth about the human body. This week on Sawbones ... things aren't so clear. You may need a stiff drink for this one ... unless your body is making them already? Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Nov 03, 201943 minEp. 297

Sawbones: Cough Drops

William Goldman wrote in The Princess Bride "True love is the best thing in the world, except for cough drops." This week on Sawbones, we ruin them. We're really sorry, Bill. Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones

Oct 25, 201940 minEp. 296

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 Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Oct 21, 201933 minEp. 295

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 Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Oct 11, 201940 minEp. 294

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 Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones

Oct 04, 201939 minEp. 293

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 Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones

Sep 27, 201936 minEp. 292

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 Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Sep 20, 201943 minEp. 291

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 Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones

Sep 13, 201953 minEp. 290

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 Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Sep 09, 201942 minEp. 289

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 Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinsawbones...

Aug 30, 201940 minEp. 288
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