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Causes or Cures
For the Nerds and the Nerd Nots
Curious about health? So is Dr. Eeks.
Causes or Cures is an independent health podcast hosted by Dr. Eeks (ErinKate Stair, MD, MPH). It is an offbeat, grassroots show driven by curiosity and a genuine love of making complicated health topics easier to understand. Science is fascinating. It does not have to sound corporate to be credible.
Dr. Eeks is a public health professional specializing in applied epidemiology and health communication. By day, she works on complex national public health issues. By choice, she spends her free time asking scientists, physicians, researchers, authors, clinicians, and other fascinating people questions she hopes everyone else is wondering too.
The goal is simple. Make good science understandable without watering it down.
Along the way, the podcast has wandered into everything from memory and longevity to self medicating animals, migraines, gene drive mosquitoes, public health history, the spiritual realm, and the occasional existential detour. If it has something to teach us about health or what it means to be human, it is probably fair game.
Recurring segments include Public Health is Weird, which uncovers strange but true stories from public health history, WTF Health News, where Dr. Eeks breaks down bizarre or buzzworthy health headlines, and Eeks Speakeasy, a more personal corner of the podcast where curiosity occasionally spills over into life, philosophy, and whatever else deserves a drink and a discussion.
A few housekeeping notes...
This podcast is for information, curiosity, and conversation. It is not medical advice.
Although Dr. Eeks has an MD, she does not practice medicine. She is a full time public health nerd and will never tell you what to do with your own health. If you have a medical question, your healthcare provider knows you far better than a podcast ever could.
Guests are invited because they have something interesting to contribute, not because Dr. Eeks agrees with every opinion they hold. Likewise, she does not endorse miracle supplements, mysterious oils, magic socks, potions, or anything that promises to solve all of life's problems.
If an episode is sponsored or underwritten by a company she genuinely enjoys working with, she will always tell you.
Causes or Cures is also not a news site. It is a place for thoughtful conversations. Dr. Eeks believes people can disagree respectfully, ask difficult questions, change their minds, and occasionally laugh at themselves along the way. Some of the best conversations she has ever had happened in hole in the walls, on sidewalks, and in places where nobody was trying to win an argument.
Sometimes Barnaby, her dog and unofficial executive producer, contributes his thoughts as well. Fortunately, he is a pretty smart dog.
Above all, Dr. Eeks hopes this podcast encourages people to stay curious, compassionate, honest, open minded, and engaged. Freedom of discussion is a beautiful, delightfully messy thing, and one worth protecting.
The views expressed on this podcast are Dr. Eeks' own and do not reflect the views of any organization she contracts with or consults for.
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Causes or Cures
The Story of Mushroom Fiber and the Flu: Beta-Glucan 101 with Dr. Maziar Divangahi
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Disclaimer: Causes or Cures is for informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, and no medical claims are being made. Always talk to a qualified healthcare provider about your personal health.
In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with immunology expert Dr. Maziar “Maz” Divangahi about his research on how fiber found in mushrooms may help us beat the flu, and he introduces us to the concept of disease tolerance.
What We’ll Cover
- Beta-Glucan 101
- What it is: a natural fiber in the outer wall of fungi (think mushrooms).
- Why it matters: growing evidence says it may help fight off the flu by improving something called disease tolerance. More research is needed to confirm.
- Two Immune Playbooks
- Host Resistance: the classic “seek and destroy” tactic.
- Disease Tolerance: a quieter, damage-control strategy our bodies use to stay functional even when a pathogen sticks around.
- Dr. Maz will unpack how beta-glucan may tilt the balance toward disease tolerance.
- From TB Labs to Flu Research
- Insights from Dr. Maz’s tuberculosis studies that set the stage for his beta-glucan–flu work.
- Early data on how this fungal fiber might boost flu-specific disease tolerance.
- Should We Eat More Mushrooms or Supplement?
- Practical tips and caveats on dietary vs. supplemental beta-glucan.
- What the current evidence actually supports.
- Beyond Infections: Beta-Glucan in Cancer Trials
- Snapshot of ongoing studies in breast and bladder cancer.
- Why disease tolerance is a hot oncology frontier.
- Future Directions & Take-Home Points
- Where Dr. Maz’s research is headed next.
- Simple, science-backed actions listeners can try today.
Listen If You’ve Ever Wondered…
- Why some people sail through the flu while others end up in the ER.
- Whether “disease tolerance” might rewrite how we tackle pandemics.
- If tossing extra shiitakes into your stir-fry can really make a difference.
Dr. Maziar (Maz) Divangahi is a Professor of Medicine at McGill University. He is the Associate Director of the Meakins-Christie Laboratories and the Associate Director of the McGill Interna onal TB Centre. He is an internationally recognized pulmonary immunologist and the overarching focus of his research program is to inves gate the regulatory mechanisms involved in host resistance and disease tolerance against major pulmonary bacterial (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) and viral (influenza virus and SARS-CoV2) pathogens. He is currently inves ga ng how to harness the power of innate memory response (Trained Immunity) in vaccine development. Throughout his career, he has been a prolifera ve inves gator publishing in outstanding journals and received numerous awards, including a CIHR New Inves gator Award, FRQS Award, and the CIHR Founda on grant. His scholarly work has been recognized by elec on to the Royal Society of Canada. He is currently holding the Strauss Chair in Respiratory Diseases.
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