This Podcast Will Kill You

by Exactly Right Media – the original true crime comedy network

15,516

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.

Recent Episodes

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Recent Reviews

Blynnb1230

No Vaccines!

This Episode Killed Your Podcast And it did, for me at least. I’m out! I’ve got a Ph.D., and you think most of your listeners are stupid.
MotherRunner22

Lost me this week

I have found this podcast enjoyable and informative but I am unsubscribing. It’s your podcast so share whatever you’d like but leaving the “I’m in Texas so I’m not sure if I could have gotten a D&C” was unnecessary and not part of the story. I prefer to listen to non-political commentary so I’ll look elsewhere.
cjeiid you gsiost

Unfollowed

There is some interesting stuff on this podcast while I listened for a few months, but I couldn’t listen anymore after Erin said during the vagina obscura episode that the “female reproductive system” was not an entirely accurate way to describe the female reproductive system. I already wasn’t a fan of the gender neutral language surrounding sexed organs: there’s an episode where one of them says “if the person has a uterus, do x” like huh, I wonder how I am able to know if they have a uterus? I can generally handle hearing this nonsense occasionally, but when Erin said that in the vagina obscura episode my jaw literally dropped because that is INSANE. How am I supposed to trust you two on anything scientific if you can’t even understand basic human anatomy?
Maddie-in-IL

Love this podcast!

I’ve loved this podcast for years, and the pregnancy series of episodes has been my favorite so far! Thank you Erins, a million times over, for such well-researched and well-presented content!! I am currently in my 2nd trimester of my first pregnancy and I have learned so much from this series that I will take with me from the rest of my pregnancy!
MAP32181

Pregnancy act 4

Best episode yet! Thank you Erins for your thoughtful evidence based information! Run for office. I appreciate y’all so much.
Micro Isophina

This podcast is great

I loved the episode on the fish tongue parasite. I am in Vet Science 4-H, so this podcast is great for me!
YellowTandy

Love it but noticing some tension

I’ve listened to and loved this podcast for years and still love it, but lately I’ve noticed that Erin AU seems prickly at Erin W’s questions, especially in the Pregnancy part 3 episode. She keeps saying “don’t ask me that” or “dunno” in a very short voice. Erin W is asking questions the listener might have, and it’s fine if the info is unavailable or unknown, but usually it’s handled more deftly and lately it’s felt tense.
CelesteJJ

Wonderfully Done

This is by far my absolute favorite medical podcast. I recommend this podcast to everybody. I think majority of people would find at least one of the episodes interesting! Thank you for your hard work ladies!
lil kramez

Thank you, Erin/Erin!

I gain so much knowledge from this podcast. I am especially appreciative of this current series on pregnancy and that you guys address abortion and choice in an empowering way. I particularly resonated with the vignette from the person with a bicornuate uterus. I have this same condition. I’ve never wanted children, but always wondered what it was like for someone with my condition who did give birth (as soon as they mentioned their baby bump being lopsided, I thought “hmm…is this what I think it is??!”) I also loved the David Lynch shout out! I REMEMBER that commercial and never knew it was directed by him! Keep up the good work!
usagkajakaksjs

😫

This podcast is genuinely so good and you can see how much effort the hosts put into doing their part. Just love it.
breeAfox

Vagina Obscura

I really loved this episode. It actually brought me to tears. To hear such open conversation about women’s issues and women’s anatomy was wonderful. Thx for the educational and fun conversation. ☺️
irismagpie

“The POPE approved Viagra!?!?!?”

Love the show. The Pope approved Viagra should be on a tshirt. That is all!!
Adele Falco CT

Interesting but…

14 minutes in before you get to actual episode content.
CJD is not funny

Hysterical giggling about fatal diseases

The hosts issue a trigger warning about a child molester but giggle hysterically while discussing a fatal disease. (Ep. 20 on prion). My Dad died from CJD two weeks after diagnosis. We didn’t giggle about it once.
DrCharmanda

This Podcast will Thrill You

I love this podcast so much! It is one of my top three most listened to podcasts, along with Ologies and Sawbones. Do you love to learn? Do you love science and medicine? Have you ever wondered about all the little pathogens that can disrupt life? Then this podcast is for you. Erin squared do a fantastic job of breaking down each topic in a way that is reachable to all interest levels and experiences. Each episode starts with a patient story, then the medical side, then moves into the history, then looks at where we are today. The content is fascinating and keeps you hanging on to the very end.
Msor89

Amazing

The hosts are thoughtful, respectful, and thorough in their discussions about some of the craziest medical issues out there. I love to hear how excited they get talking about different topics. They do not sound like 15 year olds so that 1 star review needs to get over themselves.
Ilan G.

Best podcast ever

Amazing podcast, always a pleasure to listen to the Erins!!
HBN12075

Would not recommend

Lost respect for their opinion when they stated a political opinion about how our government prohibits us about talking bad about it. America definitely has flaws, like any other country, but I hear a college student say they hate America quite frequently. lol We are lucky enough that we can speak out against our country because many countries do not give you that option. Also, it sounds like two 15 yr old valley girls run this podcast.
MarthoPolo

I’m hooked!

I can’t get enough of this show!!! It is very well researched and presented in such a way that the highly varied topics are absolutely fascinating. (Even though I’m sure many of them would be boring or over my head if I were to research them on my own.) I frequently share episodes with my friends & family.
TheNerdyBookseller

My favorite podcast

I love the way the Erins talk about how science and history collide. Always fascinating and super fun! Love the Book Club episodes too (they basically are my TBR list)
InstaAshley

Learn something new every episode

I’ve listened to this for years and only tried to self-diagnose from it once, haha. Love the Erins and the real-life stories. Still washing my hands too much over the Norovirus episode 🤮
Leash Ali

Really Good!

I’ve listened to basically every episode. If you are interested in how disease impacts our world you should listen.
Sheba Goodstein

Yesyesyesyesyesyessiiiiiir

This podcast is the best podcast I’ve ever played!!! My moms friend told me about it and it is sosososososo awesome 😎 ♥️♥️ PS spot the difference 👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨🧑‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨👩‍🎨
mixtnova

Top-tier Science and Humanity

Erin and Erin have fundamentally changed the way I see medicine. They not only bring scores of medical and historical facts and knowledge to each episode they create, but they humanize and contextualize every experience they talk about. I’ve been able to keep up with conversations with the nurses and healthcare professionals in my life just from what I’ve learned through this podcast, surprising everyone in the room (including myself). The hosts are incredibly entertaining and heartfelt people that bring a personal touchstone to diseases and conditions I’d only ever thought of as clinical. I can’t recommend this podcast enough.
sad little forest cryptid

Nerdy yay!!!

This podcast is the best! P.S. can you do an episode on autism please! I know it’s not the usual but I would love you guys to discuss its history!! 😖😄
Windsong3099

Compassionate and educational

The Erins are amazing. The show covers difficult topics with compassion, grace, and thorough research. Episodes can get graphic, but that kind of goes with the territory. Definitely recommend.
#diabetes4ever

ERIN.A FOREVER

Hello this is a great podcast and I LOVE episode 155! So I was wondering if you made an episode about Diabetes and if not can you please make one? Bye 👋
Marmo6

Like being back in school, when you loved school

I love this podcast, it’s like the presentation group project at the end of college courses, only you don’t have to do one, and you get to sit back, relax, and listen to only the best ones. Great chemistry between the hosts, no awkward group projects here. These women do their homework, and I love learning from them.
dmpinchot

Cute stories

I love that they tell historical stories. I’m hoping that they do the research. Fun way to pass the time.
kkolthoff

Disgusting but in a good way….

Alright, so let’s start this out by me saying I may be a borderline hypochondriac but I started listening in the scabies episode. I was so disgusted that I couldn’t stop listening and now I am obsessed. I have listened to about 25 more episodes and counting. Thank you ladies for your humor and informative podcast that makes my skin crawl… (again.. in a good way).
music;3

Cute!

I love Erin and Erin!
paigecm4

My favorite podcast

I first started listening to TPWKY a few years ago and have been an avid listener ever since! Recently I’ve been binging episodes while at work or walking to classes and I’m so grateful to the Erins for putting together such well researched episodes. Thanks to this show, I’ve discovered I’m really interested in public health and I’m hoping to pursue a career in that area or evolutionary biology-something I had no idea existed prior to listening! Also, as a rare disease patient and patient in general, I really appreciate how both Erins try to humanize diseases and highlight topics that are often overlooked. Each episode is a joy to listen to- fascinating, well written, and nuanced.
allyooper

Schilling for Pharma

This was recommended to me, I checked it out. The storytelling was fun, but I kept listening and while their format is really long and info could absolutely be condensed to half the time, I realized they offered solutions like immediately jumping to antibiotics and pharmaceutical products. There’s a whole host of things to do before that and they don’t recognize downsides to those solutions that can really affect your overall health. There is a bunch of misinformation here and not actual referenced science, just storytelling, which doesn’t help anyone looking for real answers. Disappointing.
DeyoeKing

Great STEM Podcast!

I learn so much and find the content fascinating.
Turtle McConnell

All the episodes!

I love your podcast! Thank you for what you do. I’m a new listener and many episodes have relevance to me or someone I know. From Alpha-Gal to Norovirus to tonsillectomies. I’m sending your episodes to those in my world to help make more informed decisions.
Hudy benudy

Best Podcast

It's so informative and provides historical context of the disease as well as the biological information and what it means for us today. The duo of Erin and Erin is a joy to listen to! Amazing and worth your valuable time.
Annamaul93

So uplifting and informative!

My partner and I are big fans of this podcast because it’s well researched, easily understood, and goes in depth about every topic they cover. It’s occasionally disgusting, because diseases, human bodies, and all the vectors that connect them can be pretty gross. We no longer listen during meals after the Norovirus episode, but we LOVE listening just about any other time. Some of my favorite episodes are the deep dives into rare conditions. They nail it! We look forward to hearing many more from these two wonderful women.
Erin Wannabe

Never Skip Pod

I absolutely love this pod! Every episode intrigues me, even if I don’t think the topic would be of interest. The Erins are incredible hosts and the content is so well-researched and well-explained.
Nimue2you

Love this podcast!

I learn so much from every episode. Erin and Erin make learning interesting. I needed teachers/professors like these two when going to school.
trulydooley

Interesting and Informative

There are so many things that can kill you! This podcast is well researched, entertaining and I have “huh! That’s cool” moments every time I listen. The hosts are genuinely excited by their topics and it makes you feel like you’re listening to two friends nerd out about weird and niche topics you never knew about. Or maybe you did know something about it but now you know MORE! This is a favorite podcast of mine and I recommend it to everyone! Happy listening!
Maffie81

Nerdy funny

This carbohydrate will kill you!! Hilarious!!
N. Arcocorrido

No filler—just fun facts! Yay!

Sooooo glad the hosts, who really come off as smart, warm, and considerate, really focus on talking about the facts they’re exploring from historical and medical angles. Unlike many podcasts, they don’t waste time on side conversations or chuckling about irrelevant comments. Instead, they focus on the facts and add depth of knowledge to the info. Great show!!
hana.casita

Love this show

Been listening for years - such a great show! Love the Erins!!
StefD43

Amazing show!

They cover everything…from stuff you’ve never heard of to the stuff you have. But, even with the stuff you’ve heard of they go into so much detail educating you (in a very entertaining way) all along. Truly love these BRILLIANT ladies!
smoby1231

Love love love

My new favorite!! I wish you ladies taught my pathophysiology class ❤️
athomp1221

Love the Erins!

I've been listening to this podcast since the beginning, and it's still one of my favorites!! Gotta love two intelligent, unproblematic ladies talking science and disease. 🩷
jo_1464

..

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Dmz89us

Interesting and informative podcast

I love this podcast because I learn things that I never would’ve known. It’s very interesting. However, I think part of the reason why I love it is because the voices of the podcasters are so soothing. Sometimes I actually listen to this podcast to fall asleep at night! Lol. The funny thing is is then I have to listen to the podcast over again the next morning because I want to find out what I missed when I fell asleep.
jacardona212

Great for nerds

This podcast is amazing. I’ve learned so much about so many diseases. My fountain of trivia grows weekly with this podcast.
7-Mary-4

The best medical podcast

Erin and Erin bring such joy and passion to disease that it’s contagious. Sorry, I couldn’t pass that up. I really hate puns, but I love this podcast. Their episode on Sickle Cell Disease was amazing. I’d also recommend the Rabies episode if you want to understand how terrifying a disease can be.