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The Other 80A podcast about how we build health - beyond healthcare Author: Claudia Williams
The Other 80 podcast brought to you by Claudia Williams at UC Berkeley School of Public Health hosts real, honest dialogue about the things that help keep people healthy beyond traditional medical care, like housing, social connections and food, and the cutting edge policies, research and programs supporting whole person health. Join former White House advisor, entrepreneur and host Claudia Williams for deep conversations with the innovators, implementers, researchers and policymakers bringing these new models to life. Well talk about whats working, whats not and how to move towards whole person health rapidly and equitably across the US. Language: en Genres: Government, Health & Fitness, Medicine Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it Trailer: |
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Drug Story: Thomas Goetz on Drugs, Diseases and The Medicalization of Everyday Life
Episode 74
Wednesday, 3 June, 2026
Does the history of drugs tell us something bigger about the world? That’s what former Wired executive editor and UC Berkeley Senior Impact Fellow Thomas Goetz is betting on with his new podcast Drug Story. He joins Claudia to talk about how big drug breakthroughs have shaped how we live and what it will really take to build health in our society.Thomas and Claudia dive into:Fluoride: The paradox of public health success becoming invisibleWhy modern culture medicalizes ordinary human experiences like sleep, aging & energyHow public health needs to communicate differently, think bigger, and position itself as essential infrastructure for everyday healthThomas says the illusion of free will makes consumers feel like unhealthy choices are their choice alone:“There is some agency, like somebody decides to take a cigarette out of the pack. People decide whether to have a Coke instead of a glass of water or what have you. But there's also this vast machine, an invisible universe that is so powerful in compelling us from the commercials that are on our TV shows to the infrastructure of fast food in our neighborhoods. And it just is this easy inertia where oftentimes we don't actually have free will… We have much less free will than we think we do when it comes to things like what we eat, how we get our entertainment, where we live. There's a lot that is not really up to us and our choices.”Relevant LinksListen to Thomas Goetz’s podcast Drug StoryAbout Our GuestsThomas Goetz is an award-winning science journalist and author. He has won National Magazine Awards (print and digital), Webby Awards, and FDA contracts. He created Drug Story as an Impact Fellow at the University of California Berkeley School of Public Health.The former Executive Editor at WIRED, he has worked at The Wall Street Journal, Inc., and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and has written two award-winning books about technology and medicine. His writing has been selected for the Best American Science Writing and the Best American Technology Writing anthologies. He spent much of the past decade developing digital tools to help people make sense of prescription medications, including leading the development of openFDA for the Food and Drug Administration, and building an economic research team and editorial operations at GoodRx. You can reach him at thomas@drugstory.coSourceConnect With UsFor more information on The Other 80 please visit our website - www.theother80.com. To connect with our team, please email claudia@theother80.com and follow us on twitter @claudiawilliams and LinkedInSubscribe to The Other 80 on YouTube so you never miss our video extras or special video episodes!
