Introducing Strange Health – a new video podcast from The Conversation
I have a confession.
When I am stressed, overwhelmed or trying to switch my brain off after a long day, I do not meditate. I do not do breathwork. I am rarely mindful. Instead, I watch YouTube videos of draining boils and earwax extraction.
Deeply satisfying. Genuinely calming. Extremely unsettling to anyone who happens to walk into the room.
I am not alone, although my husband tells me I soon will be if I continue watching acne “removal” videos in bed, particularly at full volume. Gross-out health content is everywhere, and it is wildly popular. Videos of extractions, parasites, clogged pores and bodily “build-ups” rack up millions of views. Articles about strange symptoms, mystery lumps and alarming bodily discoveries consistently top health reading lists.
This is not because people like me are weird. Or at least, not only because we are weird.
It is because bodies are strange, unpredictable and often poorly explained. When something feels embarrassing, frightening or just plain confusing, curiosity kicks in hard.
As a health editor, I commission articles from experts about the parts of the body we are usually taught not to talk about. Time and again, the most-read stories are the ones that make people recoil slightly before clicking anyway. Worms. Smells. Leaks. Stones. Toxins. The things you Google at midnight and hope nobody ever finds in your search history.
Behind the gag reflex, there is usually a serious question. Is this normal? Is this dangerous? Has the internet just convinced me I am dying?
That is why we have launched Strange Health, a new podcast series from The Conversation. In it, I’m teaming up with Dan Baumgardt, a practising GP and lecturer in health and life sciences at the University of Bristol, to decode wellness trends and explore what’s weird and wonderful about the body.
On Strange Health, Dan and I will take the health questions people are already obsessing over online, especially the bizarre, gross or misunderstood ones, and examine them properly. In each episode we’ll also be talking to academic experts who are actively researching these issue. We ask where these ideas come from, what the science really says, and why misinformation spreads so easily when bodies get involved.
From guilty pleasure to public health problem
Some of The Conversation’s most popular health articles sit firmly in this territory. Pieces about pina colada-scented vaginas, body stones, brain “holes” and “miracle cures” have attracted hundreds of thousands of readers.
That popularity tells us something important. People are not just looking for reassurance. They are looking for explanations that make sense of what their bodies are doing, and what might genuinely help, without judgement or jargon.
It also explains why misinformation thrives here. The more uncomfortable the topic, the less likely people are to ask a professional, and the more tempting it is to trust a confident stranger online.
Each episode of Strange Health focuses on a single strange or controversial health topic. Some are familiar. Some are genuinely disgusting. All of them have been circulating widely online. There will be gross details. There will be moments of disbelief. There will also be solid science and practical explanations.
If you have ever found yourself spiralling after watching a TikTok, reading a wellness blog, or eyeing up a suspicious supplement advert, Strange Health is designed for you. And we want you to become part of the conversation by submitting your own burning questions about the human body – no matter how strange they may be – to strangehealth@theconversation.com.
Strange Health launches on 20th January and the first episode is about detoxing. New episodes will be available every Tuesday throughout February and March. You can listen wherever you get your podcasts, or watch on YouTube and Spotify.
Strange Health is hosted by Katie Edwards and Dan Baumgardt. The executive producer is Gemma Ware, with video and sound editing by Sikander Khan. Artwork by Alice Mason.
Listen to The Conversation Weekly via any of the apps listed above, download it directly via our RSS feed or find out how else to listen here. A transcript is available via the Apple Podcasts or Spotify apps.
Dan Baumgardt does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. Katie Edwards works for The Conversation.