Measles: How Worried Should We Be?

Science Vs

Spotify Studios

Science, Education, Health & Fitness

4.4 • 11.7K Ratings

🗓️ 24 April 2025

⏱️ 34 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Measles is spreading in the U.S., with hundreds of cases across more than 20 states. And tons of people online are arguing over how we should feel about it. Some say this is bad because measles is SO contagious — and not enough people get the vaccine. But others say that measles isn't such a big deal, so why are we freaking out?? Didn't basically everyone get this virus back in the day and live to tell the tale? So we’ll find out — what is measles doing to our body (and our brain)? And how can we stop this outbreak ... and possibly rid the world of measles. We hear from New Scientist reporter Grace Wade, Prof. Peter Kasson, Dr. Meru Sheel and Dr. Katherine Gibney. Find our transcript here: https://bit.ly/ScienceVsMeasles In this episode, we cover: (00:00) Measles cases are popping off in the U.S. (04:04) How measles messes with our immune system (10:13) How measles can kill (14:54) How contagious is measles - really? (18:46) How good is the measles vaccine? (25:11) What are the risks of the measles vaccine? (28:34) What it will take to stop this measles outbreak This episode was produced by Wendy Zukerman, with help from Michelle Dang, Meryl Horn, Rose Rimler, and Ekedi Fausther-Keeys. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Fact checking by Eva Dasher. Mix and sound design by Bobby Lord. Music written by Emma Munger, So Wiley, Peter Leonard, Bumi Hidaka and Bobby Lord. A special thanks to the researchers we reached out to including Professor Rik de Swart, and a big thanks to Joseph Lavelle Wilson and the Zukerman family. Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, I'm Wendy Zuckerman and you're listening to Science Verses.
0:05.5	Today on the show, the insanely weird virus that is measles.
0:15.9	For more than 20 years, the US had stopped the ongoing spread of measles.
0:21.8	Yeah, I mean, we declared it eliminated.
0:24.1	This is Grace Wade, health reporter at New Scientist magazine.
0:27.8	That's the thing. The measles used to be this perfect example of the power of medicine
0:32.4	and like the power of vaccines.
0:34.7	And it was always like heralded as this great example.
0:36.8	And now we're just watching
0:38.4	it like crumble before our eyes. On the 20th of January, Texas reported a case of measles,
0:46.2	and then another one and another one. The country's deadly measles outbreak is getting worse,
0:52.4	spreading at an alarming rate in Texas.
0:54.4	Measles cases connected to the outbreak in Texas have officially passed 500 confirmed cases.
1:00.2	It's going to get worse before it gets better.
1:03.6	And now, there are infections all over the country.
1:06.3	There's a whole rash of cases in more than 20 states.
1:10.5	Some of those are just isolated cases.
1:14.1	But in other states, the disease is spreading.
1:17.0	And so that's concerning, right?
1:18.1	Because you're seeing this outbreak spread to multiple states and then from their takeoff.
1:22.7	In some cases, people who are in Texas have then spread the virus to other states, but not always.
1:29.7	Grace said that the outbreak in Michigan started when someone got infected on a trip to Ontario, Canada,
	...

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