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We're living through the largest uncontrolled experiment on human cognition in history, and most people don't even know they're subjects.

While the world moved on from pandemic panic to whatever fresh hell dominates this week's news cycle, researchers have been quietly documenting something that should terrify us all: COVID-19 is reshaping our brains in ways we're only beginning to understand.

The evidence is mounting, and it's not pretty.

"Increased post-COVID-19 behavioral, emotional, and social problems in Taiwanese children." (Shang et al., 2025)

"SARS-CoV-2 is associated with changes in brain structure in UK Biobank" (Douaud et al., Nature, 2022)

"Mild COVID Linked to Brain Damage: What That Means for You" (Undated excerpt on brain therapies)

Mounting research shows that COVID-19 leaves its mark on the brain, including significant drops in IQ scores" (Al-Aly, The Conversation US)

This is Heliox: Where Evidence Meets Empathy

Independent, moderated, timely, deep, gentle, clinical, global, and community conversations about things that matter.  Breathe Easy, we go deep and lightly surface the big ideas.

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Disclosure: This podcast uses AI-generated synthetic voices for a material portion of the audio content, in line with Apple Podcasts guidelines. 

We make rigorous science accessible, accurate, and unforgettable.

Produced by Michelle Bruecker and Scott Bleackley, it features reviews of emerging research and ideas from leading thinkers, curated under our creative direction with AI assistance for voice, imagery, and composition. Systemic voices and illustrative images of people are representative tools, not depictions of specific individuals.

We dive deep into peer-reviewed research, pre-prints, and major scientific works—then bring them to life through the stories of the researchers themselves. Complex ideas become clear. Obscure discoveries become conversation starters. And you walk away understanding not just what scientists discovered, but why it matters and how they got there.

Independent, moderated, timely, deep, gentle, clinical, global, and community conversations about things that matter.  Breathe Easy, we go deep and lightly surface the big ideas.

Spoken word, short and sweet, with rhythm and a catchy beat.
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