Television, Podcasts, and Radio

Sera Young, Northwestern University: “Accountability is probably the most powerful tool that we have,” for the Center for Strategic and International Studies The CommonHealth Podcast with Katherine E. Bliss on August 3, 2023

An Anthropologist’s Career in Global Health with Sera Young, PhD on the Explore Global Health Podcast with Dr. Rob Murphy, MD on the Explore Global Health Podcast

The Australian town where water insecurity is felt more than some communities in Bangladesh, by Carly Williams for the Australia Broadcast Corporation on April 13, 2023

Interview about biosensor tests for lead for WBBM on September 11, 2023

UN water conference will assess progress toward water and sanitation for all, an interview about World Water Day by Terry Keshner for WBBM on March 29, 2023

Interview about presentations at UN Water for WBEZ on March 25, 2023

B1G Impact highlights water research, for Northwestern University on March 6, 2023

Interview about flouride biosensors for the hourly news on WBEZ, February 10, 2023

Measuring Water Insecurity, for the Talking Under Water Podcast with Katie Johns and Bob Crossen on July 22, 2022

Down in the Dirt: Geophagy, Carbon Capture, and Conservation, for the Meat and Three Podcast on Heritage Radio Network on February 23, 2022

Water, for Deep Dive with Dorian Warren for The Takeaway on WNYC on November 18, 2021

Filling the Data Gaps on Water Poverty with Sera Young for The Stream with Will & Tom on July 28, 2021

What is ‘food insecurity’ and why did the Nobel Peace Prize go to the World Food Programme for their work combatting it? by Lisa Dent for WGN on October 9, 2020

A Crisis Within a Crisis: Water Scarcity Amid COVID-19, for The Gallup Podcast on July 17, 2020

Why do people eat chalk, earth and clay? for BBC News in 2020

The journey and challenges in measuring sustainable water in Oxfam’s impact evaluations with the HWISE Network, for the Power in the Pandemic Podcast from Oxfam on March 23, 2020

Speaking of Water: Sera Young on Identifying Who Is Water Insecure, by Brett Walton for Circle of Blue on February 25, 2020

Why do some humans eat earth? With Dr. Sera Young, on the AnthroDish Podcast with Dr. Sarah Duignan on February 25, 2020

Chatting with Dr. Sera Young about White Dirt, Women’s Health, and Water Security, a bonus episode for the Human Biology Association Podcast in 2019

What Is Pica? for Radio Health Journal on October 8, 2017

Eat White Dirt, for Reel South on Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) in 2016

Digging Our Past, for Big Picture Science from the SETI Institute on February 1, 2015

The Old And Mysterious Practice Of Eating Dirt, Revealed, by Linda Chen for The Salt on NPR on April 2, 2014

‘Tänk vad härligt att ta en näve grus och skölja runt i munnen,’ for the national radio program, Institutet (Sweeden) in 2013

The Urge To Eat Dirt, on The Academic Minute from WAMC Northeast Public Radio on December 4, 2012

Craving Earth, for Capital Public Radio in Sacramento, California in 2011

Talk Radio Europe in 2011

The Lanigan and Malone Morning Show in 2011

NewsTalk with Moncrieff (Ireland) in 2011

Eating Dirt, for the Living on Earth Podcast on June 10, 2011

Irresistible Craving To Eat Dirt May Cause Health Problems, for CBS Miami on January 10, 2011

Coping with the dangers of pica, for CBS Chicago on December 31, 2010

Health Watch—Craving Earth, for CBS-San Francisco in 2010

Matzo Balls: Eating Dirt; Mexican Food in the USA on Good Food with Evan Kleinman on KCRW Los Angeles on April 16, 2011

Video: Evan Eats Clay, on Good Food, with Evan Kleinman by Harriet Ells on April 15, 2011

Interview about Pica (Non-Food Cravings) and Anemia (in Swahili), with Said M. Ali for Pemban Zanzibari Public Television on June 28, 2010

Articles and Blog Coverage

La mitad de la población, sin acceso seguro al agua potable, for El Mostrador on September 12, 2024

Drinking water fears growing globally as San Francisco’s deemed dirty, for DPA International on Yahoo News on September 4, 2024

Jeder Zweite befürchtet Gesundheitsprobleme durch Trinkwasser, for Aponet on September 3, 2024

La mitad de la población, sin acceso seguro al agua potable, for El País on September 2, 2024

Over Half Of People Worldwide Expect Harm From Their Water In Next 2 Years, by Tyler Durden for ZeroHedge on August 30, 2024

Public Trust in Drinking Water Safety Is Low Globally, for the Homeland Security News Wire on August 30, 2024

Half the World Lacks Access to Safe Drinking Water, for Latestly on August 30, 2024

Over 50% of the world fears drinking water harm, by Dr. Priyom Bose for The Medical News on August 30, 2024

Bluewater: New study spotlights over half of people globally don’t trust their tap water, on PR Fire on August 28, 2024

Global health experts reveal widespread concerns about drinking water safety, for Health Reporter on August 27, 2024

Estudo revela em quais países as pessoas confiam menos na qualidade da água hoje às 11:16, by Giovanna Gomes for Aventuras na História on August 27, 2024

Public trust in drinking water safety has dwindled worldwide, by Andrei Ionescu for Earth.com on August 27, 2024

Quais são os países onde menos se confia na qualidade da água? Estudo revelou, by Redação Galileu for Curiosidade from Globo on August 27, 2024

Public trust in drinking water safety is low globally, by Stephanie Kulke for Northwestern Now on August 26, 2024

Northwestern studying at-home tests for lead in water, by Belinda Lichty Clarke for the Evanston Round Table on May 13, 2024

Nuevo León se adhiere a la Red Latinoamericana y del Caribe para la Inseguridad de Agua, for La Razón in 2023

‘A pile of dirt makes me drool’: why some people crave and eat inedible things, by Amy Fleming for The Guardian on December 18, 2023

Chicago-area residents to test water for study by NU, a front page article by Ezra Maille for The Chicago Tribune on September 23, 2023

350 Chicago households will get free water testing kits for lead as part of Northwestern study, by Ezra Maille on September 11, 2023

Home Water Quality Testing Kits For Lead, Copper And PFAS To Debut In Chicago, by Jeff Kart for Forbes on August 12, 2023

NU researchers develop at-home water safety test, on Evanston Now on August 13, 2023

The town where Coca-Cola runs more freely than drinking water, by Anna Patty for The Syndey Morning Herald on April 13, 2023

The Australian town where water insecurity is felt more than some communities in Bangladesh, by Carly Williams for Australia Broadcasting Corporation on April 12, 2023

‘We’re going backwards in water access’: How 46 million Americans still don’t have safe drinking water, by Cari Shane for Fast Company on March 17, 2023

More than Flow: The WISE Scales Measure Water Users’ Experiences, by Becky Neely and John Brogan for Helvetas (Switzerland) on March 14, 2023

Study led by Northwestern professor quantifies experiences with global water insecurity, by Nora Collins for The Daily Northwestern on January 3, 2023

Food insecurity and water insecurity go hand-in-hand, study finds: Study suggests water may be key to addressing hunger in low and middle-income countries, on Planet’s Water in 2022

America’s Food-Security Crisis Is a Water-Security Crisis, Too, by Lela Nargi for Mother Jones on November 25, 2022

Water insecurity is stressing mental health, by Elieen Drage O’Reilly and Alison Snyder for Axios on November 17, 2022

Are You A Tap Water Avoider? by Erin Brockovich and Suzanne Boothby for The Brockovich Report on August 24, 2022

La inseguridad alimentaria y la inseguridad hídrica van de la mano, según un estudio, by Cristina Novo for Iagua on July 4, 2022

Bachelor behind bars: Northwestern prison program provides ‘priceless’ education, by Adina Keeling for the Evanston Round Table on June 26, 2022

Food insecurity and water insecurity go hand in hand, study finds, for Smart Water Magazine on June 16, 2022

Food security and water security go hand-in-hand: Study, for Daily News Egypt on June 15, 2022

Solving water insecurity could be key to global hunger crisis: study, by Sharon Udasin for The Hill on June 14, 2022

The Emotional Weight of Water Stress, by Robin Tricoles for Brain Facts on June 13, 2022

1 de cada 3 hogares mexicanos presenta inseguridad en uso y acceso al agua, indica estudio, by Ver Perfil for El Universal (Mexico) on February 16, 2022
This story was picked up by 25 news outlets in Mexico

Inseguridad del agua en los hogares #ENVIVO, a press conference with the President of Mexico’s National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI) about nationally representative survey of Mexican’s experiences with water insecurity on February 16, 2022

The efficiency behind Amazon and the idea behind HelloFresh: How one Chicago neighborhood charity is rethinking food insecurity, by Jade Yan for the Chicago Tribune on 2021

Turnaround Park marks the spot, by Les Jacobson for the Evanston Round Table on October 3, 2021

About We Are Water Evanston, a 6 part series on the RoundTable series on September 20, 2021

We Are Water Evanston Creates Action Items for the City of Evanston, by Adina Keeling for the Evanston Round Table on July 4, 2021

Water insecurity can disrupt exclusive breastfeeding, by Susan Scutti for the NIH Fogarty International Center in June 2021

We are Water Evanston Asks Residents What Water Means to Them, by Sam Stroozas for the Evanston Round Table on March 16, 2021

Health Check: Burden of personal injury from fetching water, on BBC World Service in 2020

Climate Change Is Making Women’s Chores Deadlier, by Laura Evans for Vice on December 10, 2020

Collecting drinking water can cause serious injury and disproportionately affects women, study finds, by Georgina Hayes for The Telegraph (United Kingdom) on November 5, 2020

Who in the U.S. Is in ‘Plumbing Poverty’? Mostly Urban Residents, Study Says, by Brett Walton for WaterNews from Circle of Blue on November 3, 2020

‘We Are Water’ Project assesses Evanstonians’ relationship with water, by Delaney Nelson for The Daily Northwestern on October 7, 2020

The Coronavirus Has Exposed a Global Water Crisis. New Research Shows How to Fix It, by Dharna Noor for Gizmodo on August 24, 2020

Opinion, by Nicholas Kristof for The New York Times on April 4, 2020

Why Do People Eat Dirt? by Jesslyn Shields for How Stuff Works in 2019

Infants Consume Less Breast Milk in Households with Insecure Food Access, IAEA Research Project Finds, by Nathalie Mikhailova for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on July 23, 2019
This story was featured on the front page of UN.org

Ask 12 questions to know the impact of water stress, by K.V. Kurmanath for Reality Check on The Hindu Business Online on July 9, 2019

Why do some people eat soil? for CrowdScience on BBC on July 5, 2019

Now, water insecurity can be measured, for The Hindu on June 26, 2019

Pica Among Pregnant Women in the US, on MedPage Today in 2018

Securing food and water: Conversations with women worldwide drive anthropologist Sera Young’s research, by Clare Milliken for Northwestern Now on October 24, 2018

Sera Young: Northwestern anthropology professor on learning Swahili, eating clay, and Beyoncé, by Clare Milliken for Northwestern Now on October 24, 2018

Forget what Republicans say; some are OK with certain babies dying, by Neil Steinberg for the Chicago Sun Times on July 12, 2018

Breastfeeding linked to lower stroke risk, by Linda Caroll for Reuters on August 22, 2018

Food or Water? Dilemma leads Sera Young to create first cross-culturally validated household-level water insecurity scale, for the Institute for Policy Research on January 30, 2018

New Grants, Global Partnership Extend Water Center’s Reach, for Northwestern University in 2017

Mal di pancia? Mangiamoci un po’ di terra, for Airone (Italy) in 2017

Alumni work to strengthen ties with Mexico: Faculty panel to discuss bilateral ties Nov. 9 in Mexico City, by Mohamed Abdelfattah for Northwestern Now on November 6, 2017

Northwestern researchers take global lead on water insecurity, by Mohamed Abdelfattah for Northwestern Now on September 12, 2017

Why Do Parrots (And People) Eat Clay? by Carolyn Beans for NPR on September 7, 2017

Ancient Practice of Eating Soil Might Pose Risks to Unborn Babies, by Teresa L. Carey for Inside Science on June 7, 2017

The people who can’t stop eating dirt, by Josh Gabbatiss for BBC on June 16, 2016

Review: Craving Earth: Understanding Pica by Sera L Young, by Olutoyosi Tokun for DirtPol at the University of Sussex on December 1, 2014

Why do some people love ‘earthy’ flavours in food? by Amy Fleming for The Guardian on July 29, 2014

Geofagia: O estranho hábito de comer terra, by Laís Araújo for Continente (Portugal) in July 1, 2014

Pica in pregnant teens linked to low iron, in Science Daily on August 20, 2014

Pica in pregnant teens linked to low iron, by Krishna Ramanujan for the Cornell Chronicle on August 18, 2014

Digging Into the Dirt, by James Gorman in The New York Times on July 8, 2013
Appeared in the July 9, 2013 of the New York print edition, Section D, Page 4

Dreckige Geluste, for Geo (National Geographic, Germany) in 2013

Guess Who’s Eating Dirt: Surprising Number of Men Found Practicing Pica, by Christine Dell’Amore for National Geographic on October 19, 2012

Eating of soil and raw starch documented in Madagascar, for Science Daily on November 9, 2012

Study documents eating of soil, raw starch in Madagascar, by Krishna Ramanujan for the Cornell Chronicle on November 6, 2012

Review: Craving Earth, by Sera L. Young by Sara Davis for Scenes of Eating on January 24, 2012

Explained: Why People Sometimes Crave Dirt, for the Huffington Post on June 7, 2011

Let Them Eat Dirt, with Cynthia Graber on the Scientific American on June 3, 2011

Eating Dirt Has Long, Maybe Healthy, History, for US News and World Report on June 6, 2011

Why some people eat dirt, on Discovery News in 2011

Dirty Truth: Humans Eat Dirt to Shield the Stomach, for Fox News on June 7, 2011

Comer tierra tiene una historia larga, y quizás saludable, for Medline Pluss in 2011

Why Do People Like To Eat And Buy And Sing About Dirt? by Dave Bry for The Awl in 2011

Geofagia: e se mangiare la terra facesse bene? for Pour Femme (Italy) in 2011

De aquellos que comen física tierra: la geofagia, for El Colombiano (Columbia) in 2011

¿Por qué a algunas personas les gusta comer tierra? for El Comercio (Peru) in 2011

Hábito de comer terra ajuda a proteger de doenças, for Corrieo do Estado (Brazil) on August 6, 2011

Geofagia ar avea virtuţi nebănuite, susţine un antropolog american, by Marina Constantinoiu for Jurnalul Naţional (Romania) in 2011

Sore tummy? Skip the Tums and grab some dirt, by Jessica Ivins for KSL News in Salt Lake City, Utah in 2011

Between the lines: A trove from UC Davis faculty, for the Sacramento Bee in 2011

Why eating dirt can be good for you… and act as a shield for your stomach, for The Daily Mail (United Kingdom) on June 6, 2011

Eating earth may be good for stomach: study, for China Daily in 2011

Feeling nauseous? Eat dirt, for The Independent (United Kingdom) on June 8, 2011

Hitting pay dirt and eating it too, for The Times of India in 2011

Biting the dust proves popular, by Jeremy MacClancy for The Times Higher Education (United Kingdom) on June 16, 2011

Eating dirt may protect against pathogens and toxins, by Krishna Ramanujan for the Cornell Chronicle on June 9, 2011

Cornell Researcher Explores Eating Dirt, for The Cornell Daily Sun on November 8, 2011

Clay Craving and Dirt Dining: Eating earth may be good for us, by Rachel Nuwer for Audubon Magazine on June 6, 2011

Get Dirty: Study Finds Eating Dirt Could Have Benefits, by Justine Sterling for Delish on June 7, 2011

Is dirt safe to eat? by Nick Carraway for Free Republic on June 23, 2011

Weird Science: Eating Dirt Can Be Good For, by Elina Shatkin for LA Weekly on June 6, 2011

Dining on Dirt, for the Toronto Sun in 2011

Eating dirt has long, maybe healthy, history, for ABC News in 2011

Craving Earth, for Science News in 2011

Eat the Earth, by Janice Harper for Foodista in 2011

‘Craving Earth’: Why do some people love eating dirt? by Adam Kirsch for Salon on April 13, 2011

Eating earth: Exploring the mysterious world of geophagy, for the Ethiopian Review in 2011

Why pregnant women eat dirt, for The Week in 2011

Eating Dirt, by The Daily Dish for The Atlantic on March 30, 2011

Book about people who eat dirt, by Maggie Koerth for for BoingBoing on March 29, 2011

HIV-Positive Women Will Follow Protocols to Make Breast Milk Safe, for Voice of America on November 2, 2009

A clay multivitamin? for Focus in 2009

Why Do People Eat Dirt? by Jörg Blech for der Spiegel in 2008

The earth-eaters, by Trevor Stokes in Nature on November 1, 2006