Special Episode: Daniel Stone & American Poison
This Podcast Will Kill You
Exactly Right and iHeartPodcasts
4.8 • 17.7K Ratings
🗓️ 13 January 2026
⏱️ 58 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The widespread use of leaded gasoline in the 20th century led to one of the world’s biggest public health and environmental disasters, the effects of which are still present today. Since its development in the 1920s, leaded gasoline has been linked to premature death, cognitive impairment, and behavioral issues in millions around the globe. How was such a toxic substance permitted to be sold, despite the tireless efforts of industrial medicine warriors like Alice Hamilton? In American Poison: A Deadly Invention and the Woman Who Battled for Environmental Justice, award-winning author and historian Daniel Stone tells the story of leaded gasoline - its heroes, its villains, and the lessons we can learn. What will emerge as this generation’s leaded gasoline? PFAS? Microplastics? Something else entirely? History doesn’t have to repeat, but it will unless we heed the lessons of the past. Tune in for a fascinating episode!
Support this podcast by shopping our latest sponsor deals and promotions at this link: https://bit.ly/3WwtIAu
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | This is exactly right. This is exactly right. The The |
| 0:23.6 | The Hi, I'm Erin Welsh, and this is This Podcast Will Kill You. |
| 0:54.6 | You're tuning in to the latest episode of the TPWKY Book Club, a series where I bring on authors of popular science and medicine books to chat with them about their most recent work. |
| 1:07.2 | We have covered some wonderful topics so far this season, from important failures in the |
| 1:13.7 | history of medicine to the evolution of human language, from how bacteriophages may help us in the |
| 1:20.5 | fight against antibiotic resistance, to the promising future of regenerative medicine. |
| 1:26.3 | And we've got more books on the horizon. To check out |
| 1:30.5 | what books you may have missed or those will feature in upcoming episodes, head over to our website, |
| 1:36.3 | this podcast will kill you.com, and find the extras tab. Under that tab, click on the link for our |
| 1:42.7 | bookshop.org affiliate page, which has a bunch of |
| 1:46.3 | TPWKY book lists, including one for this book club. Make sure you're checking back in on these |
| 1:52.3 | lists regularly because I am always adding more to them. If you have any books that you think |
| 1:58.0 | would be a great fit for the TPWKY Book Club, we'd love to hear |
| 2:01.8 | about them. |
| 2:02.8 | The best way to get in touch is through the contact us form on our website. |
| 2:06.8 | Two last things before we move on to this week's book. |
| 2:10.3 | And that is first to please rate, review, and subscribe. |
| 2:13.8 | It really does help us out. |
| 2:15.8 | And secondly, you can now find full video versions of most of our newer episodes on YouTube. |
| 2:21.8 | Make sure you're subscribed to Exactly Right Media's YouTube channel so you never miss a new episode drop. |
| 2:28.3 | The 20th century was a time of profound scientific and technological progress, from transportation via horse-drawn |
| 2:37.0 | carriage to trans-oceanic airplanes, from telegrams to cell phones, from sky-high infant mortality |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Exactly Right and iHeartPodcasts, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Exactly Right and iHeartPodcasts and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.