U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy: Efforts & Challenges in Promoting Public Health

In this episode, my guest is Dr. Vivek Murthy, M.D., the acting U.S. Surgeon General who earned his undergraduate degree from Harvard and his M.D. from Yale School of Medicine. We discuss nutrition, food additives, social media and mental health, public health initiatives to combat the crisis of social isolation, the obesity crisis, addiction and other pressing issues in public health. Dr. Murthy explains the role of the U.S. government in promoting specific public health issues and the steps needed to rebuild public trust in scientific and medical information. We also discuss health care accessibility, insurance barriers and individual versus team-based medical care. We also discuss topics gleaned from listener questions, such as the facts and myths about “Big Pharma” and “Big Food” industries, scientific research and public health policies.

Articles

• Habitual daily intake of a sweet and fatty snack modulates reward processing in humans (Cell Metabolism)

Other Resources

• Office of the Surgeon General (OSG)
• U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory Social Media & Youth Mental Health
• U.S Surgeon General’s Current Priorities