The Healthland Podcast: Cervical Cancer, Blood-Donation Rules, and Testosterone

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This week we discuss cervical cancer, IUDs and the politicized debate over HPV vaccination. We also talk about whether gay men should be allowed to donate blood and why fathering a child depletes testosterone. Listen to this podcast immediately by clicking the play button below, or subscribe for free and listen on iTunes.

This week Sora (@sora_song) talked about new data on how using an IUD may help prevent cervical cancer. We then discussed the roiling debate over HPV vaccination and why the Republican candidates Michele Bachmann and Rick Perry went head-to-head over it. And in her Field Note, Sora mentioned this story by Maia Szalavitz on how quitting smoking can help your erections — and another story by Alice Park on how taking care of your heart can do the same.

John (@JohnAshleyCloud) talked about how the U.K. lifted its lifetime ban on accepting blood donations from men who have had sex with men; read Megan Gibson story on Healthland here. In his Field Note, he referred to data on on the top-20 prescription medications in the U.S., which you can find here.

Bonnie (@brochman) discussed her story on how fatherhood may decrease men’s testosterone levels; the authors of a new study are suggesting that lower testosterone levels may help men be sensitive caregivers. For her Field Note, Bonnie noted that a Florida law barring pediatricians to counsel patients on gun safety was just overturned.

Belinda (@youseless) will be back next week. In the meantime, feel free to comment below on any of these stories. We check these comments daily. And you can e-mail me directly at john_cloud@timemagazine.com.

See you next week!