How Did We Survive?

A show that unpacks wildly unsafe past trends: lawn darts, radioactive health drinks, lead everything.

7 Everyday Victorian Products That Could Kill You 08/21/2026

7 Everyday Victorian Products That Could Kill You Your great-great-grandmother's wallpaper could literally kill her in her sleep. From arsenic-laced fabrics to mercury-soaked hats, we're counting down seven shockingly toxic products that Victorians kept in every room of their homes. Spoiler: that beautiful green dress wasn't just a fashion statement—it was a death sentence. /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/42511850

The Lobotomy Ice Pick: Dr. Freeman's 10-Minute 'Cure' 08/05/2026

The Lobotomy Ice Pick: Dr. Freeman's 10-Minute 'Cure' In the 1940s and 50s, one doctor drove across America in a van he called his 'lobotomobile,' hammering an ice pick through patients' eye sockets to scramble their brain tissue. Dr. Walter Freeman promised to cure everything from depression to headaches in just 10 minutes, and became a celebrity for it. Thousands of people—including Rosemary Kennedy—were left permanently damaged before anyone stopped him. /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/42323925

Cocaine vs. Heroin: When Pharmacies Sold Both as Medicine 07/16/2026

Cocaine vs. Heroin: When Pharmacies Sold Both as Medicine Before the FDA, America's most trusted pharmaceutical companies were locked in a marketing war—pushing cocaine and heroin as miracle cures for everything from teething pain to depression. We explore how these two drugs went from doctor-recommended household staples to controlled substances, and the thousands of accidental addicts created along the way. /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/42110640

5 Foods We Ate Daily That Were Slowly Poisoning Us 06/08/2026

5 Foods We Ate Daily That Were Slowly Poisoning Us From arsenic-laced candy to lead-contaminated canned goods, our ancestors unknowingly poisoned themselves at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Today we're counting down five everyday foods that were actually toxic time bombs—and somehow humanity lived to tell the tale. Spoiler alert: you'll never look at vintage cookbooks the same way again. /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41570165

The Radium Girls Who Glowed in the Dark 05/24/2026

The Radium Girls Who Glowed in the Dark In the 1920s, painting watch dials with glowing radium was considered a glamorous job for young women—until their bones began to crumble and their jaws fell off. We explore the horrifying true story of the Radium Girls, whose suffering and legal battle changed workplace safety forever, and ask: how did any of them survive long enough to fight back? /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41405610

Humanity 01/07/2026

Humanity How did we survive?! /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093085

The Planet is Trying to Eat Us 12/24/2025

The Planet is Trying to Eat Us How did we survive?! /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093090

Best of pt2 11/26/2025

Best of pt2 How Did We Survive? best of episode! /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093095

Best of 11/11/2025

Best of How Did We Survive? best of episode! /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093100

Craziest Ever Survived 10/28/2025

Craziest Ever Survived Somebody was looking out!? /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093105

Extreme Activity 10/15/2025

Extreme Activity People actually choose to do this!? /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093110

Automobiles 09/30/2025

Automobiles The used to just explode!? /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093115

Medical Quackary pt2 09/16/2025

Medical Quackary pt2 You are supposed to trust trained professionals!? con't /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093120

Medical Quackary 09/02/2025

Medical Quackary You are supposed to trust trained professionals!? /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093125

Human Flight 08/19/2025

Human Flight Human Flight /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093130

Adventure Park pt2 08/05/2025

Adventure Park pt2 /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093135

Adventure Park 07/22/2025

Adventure Park /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093140

Most Dangerous Amusement Park Rides pt2 07/09/2025

Most Dangerous Amusement Park Rides pt2 /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093145

Most Dangerous Amusement Park Rides 06/25/2025

Most Dangerous Amusement Park Rides /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093150

From running around bare-foot to peanut allergies and beyond pt 3 06/11/2025

From running around bare-foot to peanut allergies and beyond pt 3 Somehow Humanity is still here con't /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093155

From running around bare-foot to peanut allergies and beyond pt 2 05/28/2025

From running around bare-foot to peanut allergies and beyond pt 2 Somehow Humanity is still here con't /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093160

From running around bare-foot to peanut allergies and beyond 05/15/2025

From running around bare-foot to peanut allergies and beyond Somehow Humanity is still here /episode/index/show/6bef1bbd-da3a-4267-8256-c79ffa404d1c/id/41093165

How Did We Survive?

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