Pick Your Poison

Dr. JP

Dr. JP shares her passion for poisons in this interactive show. Pick Your Poison is a fast-paced, interactive podcast about poisons and toxins, mischief and murder ranging from ancient history to pop culture. Your choices direct the diagnosis and treatment. Make the wrong choice and our patient won’t survive the podcast.

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20 episodes
fortnightly
Avg 22 min
English

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S4 · E17
Tuesday · 19 min
Under the Sink: A Pediatric Poisoning Emergency
A toddler is found screaming beneath the kitchen sink, surrounded by spilled household cleaners. Which exposure is responsible—and why can inducing vomiting or using common poisoning treatments make the situation worse? Test your toxicology instincts in this interactive pediatric emergency. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E16
August 25 · 27 min
Dead Weight: A Civil War Artifact Toxicology Mystery
A three-year-old develops abdominal pain, constipation, profound lethargy, and a sudden seizure after a family gathering. The crucial clue appears in an unexpected place—and points toward a mysterious Civil War artifact. Along the way, discover what movies get wrong about gunshot wounds and how one toxin may have influenced the Roman Empire. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E15
August 11 · 27 min
Short Circuit : A Medical Mystery of Seizures and Poisoning
A routine medication turns catastrophic when a patient's brain loses its brakes. Why won't the seizures stop? What hidden diagnosis is everyone missing? And what life-saving antidote has to be given before it's too late? Join Dr. JP as you investigate a rapidly deteriorating patient while exploring emergency medicine, toxicology, and one of the most dramatic poisoning emergencies you'll ever encounter. Your patient is waiting. Your diagnosis—and your decision—matter. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E14
July 21 · 22 min
Green Fairy: Psychosis at the Absinthe Bar
A notorious green spirit served in a Belle Époque bar. A violent patient hallucinating and fighting invisible enemies. And a medical myth linked to some of history’s most famous artists. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive emergency medicine and toxicology case involving sudden psychosis, dangerous behavior, hallucinations, substance use, medical versus psychiatric causes, and the myths surrounding a mysterious green drink. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E13
July 7 · 21 min
Wild Mistake: A Deadly Foraging Mystery
A harmless-looking plant gathered for a wilderness dinner. An ancient remedy for madness associated with Heracles. And a flower carrying the same kind of cardiac poison found in toxic toads. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive wilderness and emergency medicine case involving mistaken foraging, plant poisoning, vomiting, dangerous heart rhythms, persistent symptoms, and ancient Greek medicine. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E12
June 23 · 21 min
Poisoned Paper: The Prison Contraband Mystery
A normal conversation followed by unconsciousness within minutes. A drug abandoned as too dangerous for medicine but reborn on the illicit market. And prison contraband hidden on an apparently blank sheet of paper. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive emergency and forensic toxicology case involving highly potent synthetic-drug exposure, sudden respiratory depression, hidden prison contraband, overdose reversal, and a scene with no pills or powder. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E11
June 9 · 22 min
Breathless: The Paleolithic Hazard Hiding in Modern Kitchens
Want to know what toxin has been killing workers since Paleolithic times—and is hiding in modern kitchens? The ancient Romans called it a widow-maker… because husbands died so quickly, some women had as many as seven. Listen to find out! Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E10
May 26 · 22 min
Burning Desire: Insect toxin, aphrodisiac, and poison
An animal that poisons without biting or stinging. An infamous aphrodisiac behind centuries of terrible decisions. And a blistering substance used as a murder weapon. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive forensic toxicology case involving animal-derived exposure, severe skin and urinary-tract injury, internal burns, gastrointestinal symptoms, kidney damage, and a long history of malicious poisoning. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E9
May 13 · 21 min
Cold Fire: Poison that can combust in the ER
A poison that can burst into flame in the emergency department. Vomit and stool dangerous enough to threaten the medical team. And a possible answer to the missing bones of Waterloo. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive emergency and hazardous-materials case involving spontaneous combustion, severe gastrointestinal injury, liver failure, patient decontamination, staff safety, and battlefield history. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E8
April 28 · 21 min
Killer Candy: The killer candy found in King Tut's tomb
A candy flavor beloved around the world. An ancient treat found in King Tut’s tomb and rumored to make camels less thirsty. And an overdose that drives blood pressure up while throwing the heart out of rhythm. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive medical toxicology case involving candy and herbal-product exposure, severe hypertension, low potassium, muscle weakness, cardiac arrhythmias, and electrolyte treatment. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E7
April 14 · 21 min
Breathing Fire: A Toxic Lung Emergency
Fire eaters who damage their lungs without being burned. Hot-tub users who develop a serious respiratory illness. And gasoline thieves poisoned by the way they steal it. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive pulmonary and emergency medicine case involving hydrocarbon aspiration, chemical pneumonitis, cough, low oxygen, secondary infection, and treatment that may not involve antibiotics. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E6
March 31 · 21 min
Poisoned by Paleontology: A Blowgun Poison Mystery
Today's episode is about a toxin so powerful that a little smeared on the tip of a blowgun arrow is enough to silence every muscle in your body, including your diaphragm, stopping your breathing. How did a poison like this become a commonly used drug in modern medicine? We'll also go inside a Siberian prison cell where one of the most high-profile political prisoners on the planet collapses and dies. Was this a state-sponsored assassination using a poison from the rainforest? Listen to find out. Send us Fan Mail
- Transcript
S4 · E5
March 17 · 23 min
Locked In: Fever, Paralysis, and a Mystery Pill
A fever that refuses to break with ordinary medicine. Muscles rigid enough to trap a conscious patient inside the body. And the diagnostic chaos caused by “a round white pill.” Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive medication-safety case involving a severe drug reaction, hyperthermia, muscle rigidity, altered mental status, medication identification, supportive care, and competing diagnoses. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E4
February 24 · 26 min
The Last Supper: Did foraging topple a royal dynasty?
A foraged mushroom served at a royal meal. A dinner said to have ended the House of Habsburg and changed Europe. And a plant extract investigated as an antidote to liver failure. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive wilderness and emergency medicine case involving mushroom foraging, delayed gastrointestinal symptoms, severe liver injury, transplant evaluation, and uncertain antidote evidence. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E3
February 11 · 20 min
The Quiet Baby: An infant poisoned, an antidote from the serum of scientists
A healthy infant who becomes too weak to cry or feed. A digestive system missing key protective bacteria and bile acids. And a lifesaving antidote produced with help from scientists—and horses. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive pediatric toxicology case involving foodborne or environmental spores, descending paralysis, poor feeding, respiratory failure, stool testing, and specialized antitoxin treatment. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E2
January 28 · 21 min
Sublimation: Death in a sealed room
A locked room with no intruder. A dead person with no sign of trauma. And a volatile clue that vanishes before investigators arrive. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive forensic toxicology mystery involving enclosed-space exposure, sudden collapse, oxygen displacement, scene safety, postmortem uncertainty, and a substance that leaves little evidence behind. Send us Fan Mail
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S4 · E1
January 14 · 19 min
Sweet: Ancient biological weapon. Modern aphrodisiac.
A natural poison that harms humans but leaves bees untouched. A rare honey valuable enough to risk lives harvesting it. And a sweet weapon used in conflicts between Russia and Ukraine. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive foodborne and wilderness medicine case involving contaminated honey, vomiting, low blood pressure, dangerously slow heart rate, cardiac monitoring, and ancient biological warfare. Send us Fan Mail
- Transcript
S3 · E23
Dec 9, 2025 · 19 min
Hot Water: When bath salts become deadly
An easy-to-buy drugstore product that can paralyze like a famous bacterial poison. An old-fashioned enema once used for brain injuries. And a treatment choice that turns constipation into a toxic emergency. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive medication and gastrointestinal toxicology case involving enema misuse, electrolyte disturbance, muscle weakness, respiratory failure, ECG changes, and urgent supportive treatment. Season 4 Send us Fan Mail
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S3 · E22
Nov 26, 2025 · 24 min
Fermentation: The Mysterious Blood Alcohol Level
A beer-related ingredient other than alcohol that can cause disease. A diagnosis defense attorneys may be especially fond of. And the reason every person has a measurable blood-alcohol level—even without drinking. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive gastrointestinal and forensic medicine case involving internal fermentation, altered mental status, disputed intoxication, microbiome changes, diagnostic testing, and unusual alcohol production. Send us Fan Mail
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S3 · E21
Nov 11, 2025 · 15 min
Fumigation: A Pesticide Poisoning Mystery
A gas that has killed thieves entering treated homes. A pesticide potent enough to threaten entire families. And a fumigant with consequences for the ozone layer. Your patient. Your diagnosis. Your decision. An interactive environmental and occupational toxicology case involving home fumigation, nausea, seizures, heart and lung injury, responder safety, decontamination, and limited antidote options. Send us Fan Mail
- Transcript

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