Inside Health

Penis fillers were an unexpected talking point at the recent Winter Olympics after claims that male ski jumpers were having them to improve performance.
So this week we’re digging into the UK’s penis filler industry.
James visits a private clinic in Manchester to hear about about the procedure, which involves hyaluronic acid being injected to temporarily increase penis girth. 
He meets Jason, who had his first penis filler five months’ ago, and he explains why he wanted it and how he weighed up the risks versus the benefits.
James also chats to an NHS surgeon who says increasing numbers of men are seeking out the procedure - and he is dealing with the consequences when it goes wrong.
Also this week, why is aspirin in short supply?
Presenter: James Gallagher
Producer: Gerry Holt
Editor: Ilan Goodman
Production coordinator: Stuart Laws
Sound engineer: Emma Harth
The show was made by the BBC’s Audio Science Unit in collaboration with The Open University.

ME – also known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome – has long been one of medicine’s most perplexing conditions. With no definitive diagnostic test and a legacy of scepticism in parts of the medical community, patients have often struggled to be believed. But a surge of new research may finally be shifting the landscape.

The emergence of Long COVID – a condition with striking similarities to ME – has accelerated scientific interest and opened new lines of inquiry into the underlying biology of both illnesses.
In this episode, James Gallagher speaks to Dr Chris Ponting about the latest DecodeME results, which point to a strong genetic component to ME. And Professor Rosemary Boyton outlines the ambition behind the new Rosetta Stone study, designed to build a detailed evidence base of shared biomarkers across ME and Long COVID.

James also hears from Catherine and Jo, who have lived with ME for many years. They describe their diagnostic journeys and how they manage their symptoms in their daily lives.
Presenter: James Gallagher
Producer: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell
Researcher: Tom Hunt
Editors: Erika Wright and Ilan Goodman

Over 1.5million adults in the UK tried weight loss drugs in 2024-25. Many swear by them, but they have been associated with side effects including nausea and, in some cases, extremely painful gallstones. But what does the evidence actually tell us, and what is the wider impact on the way we view our bodies in society?
James Gallagher is joined by Professor of Cardiometabolic Medicine at the University of Glasgow Naveed Sattar, Dr Beverley O’Hara, Lecturer in Public Health Nutrition at Leeds Beckett University, and Dr Margaret McCartney, resident Inside Health GP. They discuss what the evidence tells us about the potential known side effects of these weight loss drugs, and the potential impact their use has on our view of obesity as a society. We also hear from Sarah Le Brocq, who has struggled with obesity all her adult life and has been on these drugs for the past 2-3 years about her experiences.
Margaret McCartney has no conflicts of interest to declare.
Beverley O’Hara has no conflicts of interest to declare. She has 2 roles with the Association for the Study of Obesity (voluntary academic positions).
Naveed Sattar has consulted for and/or received speaker honoraria from AbbVie, Amgen, AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Carmot Therapeutics, Eli Lilly, Gan & Lee, GlaxoSmithKline, Hanmi Pharmaceuticals, Kailera, Mass Medicines, Menarini-Ricerche, Metsera, Novo Nordisk, Pfizer, Regeneron, Roche, UCB Pharma, and Verdiva Bio; and received grant support paid to his University from AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Novartis, and Roche.
Presenter: James Gallagher
Producer: Hannah Fisher
Researcher: Tom Hunt
Production coordinator: Stuart Laws
Content Editor: Ilan Goodman

Dentistry is high on the public and political agenda. There have been dozens of headlines about access to NHS dentistry, with some people having to travel huge distances to find a dentist, or being put onto long waiting lists to get an NHS appointment.
In this episode of Inside Health, James Gallagher is joined by chairman of the British Dental Association Eddie Crouch, the Oral Health Foundation's Dr Rachael England, and consultant oral surgeon Tom Thayer. Together, they drill into the issues surrounding NHS dentistry. Along the way, they discuss possible solutions, whether contract reforms will help, and the potential future of dentistry in the UK.
Presenter: James Gallagher
Producers: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell and Thomas Hunt
Production coordinator: Stuart Laws
Content editor: Ilan Goodman

Most of us have Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) hiding in our bodies.
You may know it as the cause of glandular fever or “kissing disease”.
But more research is suggesting that it can turn our immune systems against us to cause autoimmune disease, such as multiple sclerosis or lupus.

So, what is the virus doing in our bodies - and can we do anything about it?
James is joined by Dr Claire Shannon-Lowe, a virologist at the University of Birmingham, and Dr Patrick Kearns from the University of Edinburgh, a neurologist and epidemiologist.
And we delve into the world of echolocation.
Bats hunt at night by making pulses of sounds and listening to the echoes so they can build a picture of the world around them in total darkness - and it's a technique some people with visual impairment use to explore the world.
A team at the University of East Anglia has been testing how well humans can pick up these skills, so James pays a visit to have a go...
Presenter: James Gallagher
Producers: Gerry Holt, Tom Bonnett & Thomas Hunt
Production coordinator: Stuart Laws
Content editor: Ilan Goodman