TED Health

Why does losing weight often feel like an uphill battle? Physician Katherine Saunders unpacks how our bodies are wired to store fat, revealing that obesity isn’t simply a lack of willpower — it’s a complex, chronic disease rooted in evolutionary biology. She shares the science behind the latest breakthroughs in treatment, from lifestyle interventions to powerful new medications. For a chance to give your own TED Talk, fill out the Idea Search Application: ted.com/ideasearch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Do you hate the taste of cilantro and chocolate? You might be a super taster! Rachel Herz is a neuroscientist at Brown University who specializes in taste and smell. In this episode, Adam, Rachel, and Adam’s wife Allison Sweet Grant investigate the sources of their different food preferences, uncover the overlooked power of smell, and analyze the effects of the gene that can turn some people into picky eaters. This episode originally aired on ReThinking with Adam Grant July 22, 2025. For a chance to give your own TED Talk, fill out the Idea Search Application: ted.com/ideasearch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You know it's important to take care of your physical and mental health. But what about your social health? Social scientist Kasley Killam shows how feeling a sense of belonging and connection has concrete benefits to your overall health — and explains why it may be the missing key to living a longer and happier life. For a chance to give your own TED Talk, fill out the Idea Search Application: ted.com/ideasearch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

At the plant-based burger chain Slutty Vegan, Pinky Cole is flipping the script on vegan food with bold style. In conversation with host of "TED Radio Hour" Manoush Zomorodi, she shares the highs and lows of her entrepreneurial journey, from her roots in Baltimore to the grease fire that took her first storefront in Harlem. Learn more about the authenticity, resilience and community that went into building a multimillion-dollar vegan food empire. This episode originally aired on TED Talks Daily May 12, 2025. For a chance to give your own TED Talk, fill out the Idea Search Application: ted.com/ideasearch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After a mysterious wave of tics and twitches swept through a small-town high school in New York, documentary podcaster Dan Taberski set out to investigate what was really happening. Drawing on extensive research and intimate interviews with the people involved, he explores the roots of mass hysteria — and what it reveals about the line between illness and belonging. What happens when the very thing that makes us sick ... is also what connects us? After the talk, Shoshana interviews Dan on how his research into the mysterious Havana Syndrome leads to his unearthing of a similar mass hysteria in Le Roy, New York. They also discuss how storytelling can reshape discourse surrounding medicine and what happens when the person experiencing an illness feels unheard and unsupported by the very medical professionals supposed to care for them? For a chance to give your own TED Talk, fill out the Idea Search Application: ted.com/ideasearch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.