Best Rob Calder Podcasts (2025)

1
Adolescent substance use in Africa with Sandra Jumbe and Chris Newby 18:25

17d ago18:25

18:25

In this episode, Dr Elle Wadsworth speaks to Dr Sandra Jumbe from the School of Social and Health Sciences at Millenium University in Malawi and the Wolfson Institute of Public Health Queen Mary, and Dr Chris Newby from the Medical School at the University of Nottingham. Sandra and Chris discuss their findings from a systematic review and meta-anal…

1
Nitazenes in wastewater with Richard Bade 15:35

22d ago15:35

15:35

In this episode, Dr Elle Wadsworth talks to Dr Richard Bade from Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences at the University of Queensland about his and his co-authors research report on the identification of nitazenes through wastewater analysis, using two-years of data from 22 countries. Richard discusses why a study detecting nitazen…

1
Communicating public health research with Sarah Jackson, Martin Jarvis and Robert West 20:33

2M ago20:33

20:33

In this episode, Dr Elle Wadsworth talks to three generations of tobacco/nicotine researchers: Dr Sarah Jackson and Emeritus Professors Martin Jarvis and Robert West, all from the Department of Behavioural Science and Health at University College London. They discuss a recent editorial, ‘The price of a cigarette: 20 minutes of life?’ – why the mess…

1
Psychedelics to manage opioid use with Noa Krawczyk 19:06

2M ago19:06

19:06

In this episode, Dr Elle Wadsworth talks to Dr Noa Krawczyk from the Department of Population Health at NYU Grossman School of Medicine about her and her co-authors research report on self-reported experiences and perspectives on using psychedelics to manage opioid use among participants of two Reddit communities. Noa discusses the current treatmen…

1
1. Alcohol and the pleasure of intoxication with James Nicholls 16:18

3M ago16:18

16:18

In this episode, Dr Elle Wadsworth talks to Dr James Nicholls from the University of Stirling about an opinion paper he co-authored with Professor Geoffrey Hunt on whether pleasure should receive more attention in public health-oriented alcohol research. They discuss what alcohol researchers and public health professionals can learn about ‘intoxica…

1
Young people and disposable e-cigarettes with David Hammond 22:14

9M ago22:14

22:14

In this episode Dr Elle Wadsworth talks to Professor David Hammond about vaping. They discuss policy differences between the Canada, the UK and the US as well as changes relating to disposable vapes and the use of nicotine salts. They cover the environmental impact of some of these products before talking about the different choices available to po…

1
Opioids, cancer and mortality with Aleksi Hamina 13:13

10M ago13:13

13:13

In this episode Ben Scher talks to Dr Aleksi Hamina from the Norwegian centre for addiction research at the University of Oslo and the Niuvanniemi Hospital in Finland. They discuss a recent paper co-authored by Dr Hamina in which the team matched large national datasets to identify excess mortality among people who use drugs that can be attributed …

1
Cannabis potency and psychotic experiences with Lindsey Hines 25:35

11M ago25:35

25:35

In this episode, Dr Rob Calder talks to Dr Lindsey Hines about her study using longitudinal data to examine links between cannabis use, cannabis potency and psychotic experiences. Dr Hines talks about using Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) data - also known as 'Children of the Nineties' and discusses why psychosis and cannab…

1
Cannabis use in the US with Jonathan Caulkins 22:32

12M ago22:32

22:32

In this episode Dr Elle Wadsworth talks to Professor Jonathan Caulkins about self-reported cannabis use in the US between 1979 and 2022 and how those trends compare with alcohol use over the same period. The research focused on four specific time points, measuring cannabis prevalence against US policy changes. Dr Wadsworth and Professor Caulkins th…

1
Integrated care vans with Kathleen Page 26:10

12M ago26:10

26:10

In this episode, Ben Scher talks to Dr Kathleen Page about her evaluation of an integrated care van that ran in Baltimore offering healthcare interventions and buprenorphine prescribing. Dr Page discusses using a cluster randomised trial to compare outcomes in different neighbourhoods (those where the van did and didn't go) and to explore whether t…

1
Smoking and abdominal obesity with Germán Carrasquilla 17:53

1y ago17:53

17:53

In this episode Rob Calder talks to Dr Germán Carrasquilla about his study assessing whether smoking cased increases in abdominal obesity or belly fat. They discuss the implications of this kind of fat and note the importance of the findings for people who struggle to quit smoking. Germán talks about using Mendelian randomisation to identify a caus…

1
Benzodiazepines and treatment with Adam Bakker, Michael Liebrenz and Alexander Smith 23:17

1y ago23:17

23:17

In this episode Ben Scher talks to Dr Adam Bakker, Professor Michael Liebrenz and Dr Alexander Smith about their commentary in response to a previous paper by Domzaridou and colleages (2023). They discuss the complexities of providing treatment for people who use, and are prescribed, opiates, opiate agonist medications and benzodiazepines. They tal…

1
Contingency management with Gabriela Khazanov, James, McKay and Richard Rawson 27:09

1y ago27:09

27:09

In this episode, Ben Scher talks to Dr Gabriela Khazanov, Professor James McKay and Professor Richard Rawson. They discuss what contingency management is and how effective it can be in treatment settings. They also talk about how contingency management can be used for stimulant use disorders; an area where there are relatively few evidence-based tr…

1
Xylazine, heroin and drug markets with Caroline Copeland 20:40

1y ago20:40

20:40

In this episode Ben Scher talks to Dr Caroline Copeland about her work analysing drug death data to identify drug use trends, harms and to inform policy. Caroline talks about how xylazine first entered the US drug market but has been increasingly identified in Europe and the UK, even being identified in vapes sold as containing tetrahydrocannabinol…

1
Synthetic opioid production in Europe with Paul Griffiths 33:15

1y ago33:15

33:15

In this episode, Dr Elle Wadsworth talks to Paul Griffiths about synthetic drug production in Europe including the differences between lab-made substances and diverted medical drugs. They discuss organised crime and its impact on cocaine production, drug availability and the potential for drug contamination. They also cover fentanyl and the potenti…

1
Alcohol-free drinks in the US with Molly Bowdring 17:01

1y ago17:01

17:01

In this episode Dr Merve Mollaahmetoglu talks to Dr Molly Bowdring about her recent article on the impact of alcohol-free drinks such as zero-percent beers, wines and mocktails. Molly talks about using survey data to explore different patterns, such as using non-alcoholic drinks to slow alcohol consumption, to alternate days or as part of someones …

1
Gambling advertising with Philip Newall 32:02

1y ago32:02

32:02

In this episode, Rob Calder talks to Dr Philip Newall about how the gambling industry frames the evidence on gambling advertising. Philip talks about researching the kinds of bets that are commonly advertised, explaining how they are often projected to be 'good' bets when the chances of winning are very small. "It's really got the two sides of the …

1
Addiction and definitions with Robert West 18:53

1+ y ago18:53

18:53

In this episode Zoe Swithenbank talks to Professor Robert West about his work on ontologies within addictions. Robert begins by summarising the definitions and constructions that relate to addiction, as well as their meanings and the implications for treatment. He also explains how different definitions can frustrate progress in addiction-related r…

1
Nitrous oxide, addiction and substance use disorder with Sammie Back and Emese Kroon 24:10

1+ y ago24:10

24:10

In this episode Dr Elle Wadsworth talks to Sammie Back and Emese Kroon about nitrous oxide. The discussion happened on 8 November 2023, on the day that possession of nitrous oxide became a Class C substance in the UK. The group discuss the existing evidence for harms, addiction and other disorders, exploring this relatively under-researched area. T…

1
Pregnancy and opioids with Jerry Cochran 20:24

1+ y ago20:24

20:24

In this episode Ben Scher talks to Professor Gerald (Jerry) Cochran about his article based on a randomized multisite pilot trial investigating the impact of Patient Navigation. Jerry begins by describing Patient Navigation, explaining how it works and how it can help people stay engaged in care. The research team explored whether this approach hel…

1
Minimum unit pricing and road traffic accidents with Francesco Manca 25:45

1+ y ago25:45

25:45

In this episode Rob Calder talks to Francesco Manca about his research on Scotland's Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP) policy for alcohol, and specifically about the impact that MUP has had on road traffic accidents. Francesco discusses how the research team selected appropriate comparitors to assess whether changes to road traffic accidents could be attr…

1
Mental health and social care with Amy O'Donnell and Kat Jackson 35:54

1+ y ago35:54

35:54

In this episode, Zoe Swithenbank talks to Drs Amy O'Donnell and Kat Jackson about their recent study on how to improve care for people with coexisting heavy drinking and depression. The discuss the theoretical concept of Relational Autonomy and how it influenced their research. Amy and Kat describe how they set up the research, and in particular th…

1
Smoking cessation trials with Zoe Swithenbank 25:51

1+ y ago25:51

25:51

In this episode, Rob Calder talks to Zoe Swithenbank about her recent article looking at how to improve research reports on smoking cessation trials. Zoe talks about the challenges of organising an international meeting of experts before the COVID-19 pandemic (before people were used to online working). She talks about some common errors and omissi…

1
Drug Consumption rooms with Laurence Lalanne 20:29

1+ y ago20:29

20:29

In this episode Ben Scher talks to Professor Laurence Lalanne about drug consumption rooms and the recent publication based on the COSINUS cohort study. They cover the range of interventions available in drug consumption rooms and how they can increase people's access to psychiatric support alongside barriers to accessing drug consumption rooms. La…

1
Drug consumption rooms with Marie Jauffret-Roustide 37:57

1+ y ago37:57

37:57

In this episode Ben Scher talks to Dr Marie Jauffret-Roustide about drug consumption rooms and the recent publication based on the COSINUS cohort study. They cover a range of issues including the history of drug consumption rooms, the evidence on effectiveness and the challenges of studying this particular intervention.They also reflect on the soci…

1
Drones delivering Naloxone with Caroline Copeland, Patrick Courtney and Paul Royall 28:06

1+ y ago28:06

28:06

In this episode, Rob Calder talks to Drs Caroline Copeland, Patrick Courtney and Paul Royall about their recent article assessing the time it would take for drones to deliver naloxone to people who are overdosing on opioids. The study team used NPSAD (National Programme on Substance Abuse Deaths) data to map out overdoses in Teeside over recent yea…

1
Canadian low-risk drinking guidelines 40:16

1+ y ago40:16

40:16

In this episode Dr Merve Mollaametoglu talks to Dr Catherine Paradis director of health promotion and scientific alcohol lead at the Canadian Centre of Substance Use and Addiction, Dr Kevin Shield from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto and Dr Peter Butt clinical associate professor Department of Family Medicine at the University…

1
Social media and alcohol with Brandon Cheng 17:27

1+ y ago17:27

17:27

Dr Elle Wadsworth talks here to Brandon Cheng about his research on social media posting and drinking behaviour. Brandon talks about the influence that media and social media have on young people and how they can influence their drinking behaviour. “A young person watching a short video of people enjoying drinks [is] likely to develop a much more v…

1
Cannabis, sport and anti-doping regulations with Tom Hudzik 23:03

1+ y ago23:03

23:03

In this episode Dr Rob Calder talks to Dr Thomas Hudzik about his work with the World Anti Doping Agency (WADA). Tom talks about the three principles by which a substance is assessed and how they use the latest research and policy changes to make decisions about whether a substance is banned and how it is detected. They specifically cover the decis…

1
Fentanyl, poly-substance use and the US opioid epidemic with Joseph Friedman 15:52

1+ y ago15:52

15:52

Ben Scher talks to Dr Joseph Friedman about his research on fentanyl overdoses. Joseph explains the four waves of opioid overdoses in the US and how opiate and opioid overdoses have changed. They discuss how patterns of poly-substance use are different across the US and how the combination of fentanyl and methamphetamines is become more prevalent a…

1
Vaping and smoking cessation with Vassilis Sideropoulos 24:36

1+ y ago24:36

24:36

Rob Calder talks to Vassilis Sideropoulos about a recent paper on the role of vaping products in smoking cessation. The first author for this paper was Dr Catherine Kimber. Vassilis talks about the array of components that can contribute to quitting smoking when using vaping products. He summarises the research team’s work on identifying which comb…

1
Overdose risk, opioid agonists and other medications with Eleni Domzaridou 18:21

1+ y ago18:21

18:21

Rob Calder talks to Dr Eleni Domzaridou about her recent article on the risk of overdose among people prescribe medication for opioid use at the same time as being prescribed other medication - such as for mental health disorders. People who use opioid drugs are often prescribed drugs for physical or mental health problems or for pain management. E…

1
Methamphetamine, psychosis and family history with Rebecca McKetin 18:26

1+ y ago18:26

18:26

In this episode Ben Scher talks to Dr Rebecca McKetin about her recent article looking the relationship between psychosis, psychotic symptoms and methamphetamine use. They discuss the implications and talk about who exactly is at risk of methamphetamine-related psychosis. Along the way, they cover the background of methamphetamine use in Australia …

1
Hallucinogen use, young adults and monitoring the future with Katherine Keyes 23:06

2y ago23:06

23:06

In this episode, Dr Elle Wadsworth talks to Dr Katherine Keyes about her study examining changes to hallucinogen use among young adults in the US. Katherine also talks about using the Monitoring The Future survey to identify patterns of substance use among young adults. "...going from 2020 to 2021 we really saw substantial increases in the prevalen…

1
Perspectives on gambling from 1561 with Louise Nadeau 23:09

2y ago23:09

23:09

In this episode Ben Scher talks to Professor Louise Nadeau about her recent article anaysing the content of a Latin-language treatise on gambling addiction written nearly 500 years ago. Ben and Louise discuss the medical model of gambling and issues of historic identification. They unpick how the original authors wrote about the medical model of ad…

1
Risk of bias in tobacco cessation trials with Jamie Hartmann-Boyce 20:12

2y ago20:12

20:12

In this episode, Chloe Burke talks to Dr Jamie Hartmann-Boyce about new guidance from the Cochrane Tobacco Addiction Group (TAG) on assessing and minimising risk of bias in tobacco cessation trials. Jamie explains some of the key challenges in this area and explains some of the primary sources of bias that authors need to be aware of when analysing…

1
Cannabis legalisation in Canada with Janni Leung 25:55

2y ago25:55

25:55

In this episode, Dr Elle Wadsworth talks to Dr Janni Leung about her work on a systematic review of the evidence on cannabis arrests, cannabis products and prices since Canada legalised cannabis. Janni talks discusses how arrest figures have changed, along with trends in legal and illicit purchase of cannabis. She covers issues relating to cannabis…

1
Bacterial infections and social determinants of health with Thomas Brothers 21:17

2y ago21:17

21:17

In this episode Ben Scher talks to Dr Thomas Brothers about his qualitative systematic review looking at infections from injecting drug use. Tommy and Ben talk about bacterial and fungal infections and how social and structural factors can have a detrimental impact on access to treatment and health outcomes for people who use drugs. Tommy discusses…

1
Cannabis and apps with Marleen Olthof and Matthijs Blankers 30:22

2y ago30:22

30:22

In this episode, Rob Calder talks to Marleen Olthof and Dr Matthijs Blankers about their research into ICan - a digital health app designed to reduce cannabis use. They initially talk about the potential of using apps to improve health and support people who use drugs before also discussing how apps can improve access to support. “It’s a much small…

1
Long-acting buprenorphine with Jo Neale 25:32

2y ago25:32

25:32

Professor Joanne Neale talks to Addiction Audio about her latest research into how people feel during the first 72 hours of having long-acting buprenorphine (Buvidal). Jo talks about the recent history of this medication and how it predated the COVID-19 pandemic and was then brought to attention because it meant that people did not have to attend a…

1
Smoking and Ecological Momentary Assessment with Olga Perski 37:33

2y ago37:33

37:33

Dr Perski explains the evolution of Ecological Momentry Assessment (EMA) studies and how they have been used to collect granular data relating to everyday experiences. Olga's latest review focuses on EMA studies and smoking, looking at lapse and relapse. She talks about how EMA can be used to test and develop models and theories of addiction in way…

1
The acute effects of cannabis with Will Lawn 32:07

2y ago32:07

32:07

Rob talks to Dr Will Lawn about his research into the acute effects of cannabis on young people and adults. Will talks about setting up a study looking at young people and adults’ experiences of using cannabis with different levels of cannabidiol. He talks about the challenges of blinding participants to different types of cannabis; about how to ma…

1
Heated tobacco products and nomenclature with Katie East 15:23

2+ y ago15:23

15:23

In this episode, Dr Katherine East talks about her recent article on heated tobacco product use. When conducting this research, Katie talked to former and current smokers who use IQOS to understand the words they use to describe themselves and what they do in relation to heated tobacco products. Katie and Rob then talk about how the language can re…

1
The rise of disposable vaping products with Harry Tattan-Birch 23:52

2+ y ago23:52

23:52

In this episode, Harry Tattan-Birch talks about his recent article on the increased popularity of disposable vaping products. He discusses the difference between this new generation of vaping products compared with the original versions. He talks about the data that suggest a rise in vaping alongside a lack of change in use of nicotine products ove…

1
Highly processed foods and addiction with Ashley Gearhardt 32:18

2+ y ago32:18

32:18

In this episode of Addiction Audio, Rob Talks to Dr Ashley Gearhardt from the University of Michigan about whether highly processed foods can be considered to be addictive substances. Dr Gearhardt starts by defining highly processed foods before covering the issues that arise from having an addictive substance (such as food) that you can’t ‘opt out…

1
Substance use among refugees with Ebtesam Saleh 21:51

2+ y ago21:51

21:51

In this episode of Addiction Audio, Rob talks to Ebtesam Saleh a Doctoral student at the Charite university in Berlin. Ebtesam talks about her recent systematic review of qualitative research on substance use among refugees. She talks about talks about the limitations of using survey data to explore this issue and how qualitative research can help …

1
Racial equity, research and the SRNT taskforce with Mignonne Guy and Megan Piper 47:23

2+ y ago47:23

47:23

In this episode of Addiction Audio, Drs Mignonne Guy and Megan Piper talk about their work on the racial equity taskforce for the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (SRNT). It was a powerful and wide-ranging discussion about developing anti-racist practice, social constructs of race, research methods, society organisations and research fu…

1
Ontologies and tobacco, nicotine and vaping products with Sharon Cox 27:52

2+ y ago27:52

27:52

In this episode we talk to Dr Sharon Cox about developing an ontology around nicotine and tobacco products. Sharon also talks about the importance of ontologies and how they are important for research. She talks about how to manage disagreements when developing a system that categorises and defines products, behaviours and properties. “So, as resea…

1
Opioid agonist treatment, drug related deaths and dynamic models with Matt Hickman 18:18

2+ y ago18:18

18:18

In this episode, Professor Matt Hickman talks about using population modelling to identify the population implications of Opioid Agonist Treatment (OAT). He covers the impact that OAT has on drug-related deaths and other causes of mortality as well as how models can be used to explore what mortality rates would have been without OAT in New South Wa…

1
Cannabis use and bipolar disorder with Alexander Denissoff 20:40

3y ago20:40

20:40

In this episode Dr Alexander Denissoff talks about his recent research into the potential associations between cannabis use and later life bipolar disorder. He discusses the basis for hypotheses that link cannabis and bipolar disorder, outlining what the Northern Finland Birth Cohort is and how it was used in this study. “It’s an ongoing birth coho…

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Rob Calder Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen