
From cons to cures, scams to scares and sifting fakes from facts. \n\nHealth consumer show Con or Cure is dedicated to righting the wrongs of ‘bad medicine’. Dr Xand van Tulleken and journalist Ashley John-Baptiste scour the country to expose medical quacks, explode false news, explain topical health and showcase extraordinary cases. In a world of social media and information at our fingertips, they’ll help you sift the right advice from the downright dangerous, shine a light on medical malpractice and criminal behaviour, and help you take your health in your own hands.\n\nIn this episode, Xand and Ashley explore health tourism, a booming industry, with many Brits heading abroad for plastic surgery or other treatments. But is it easy to do it safely? Mum and daughter Jackie and Tracey were tempted by sun and surgery, but both were left with horrific injuries. We reveal the red flags to look out for when booking surgery abroad.\n\nFor 41-year-old Justin, Facebook was a place where he could keep in touch with family, and as a person with learning disabilities, find a safe and comfortable space to chat with friends. That was until he was manipulated and scammed out of thousands of pounds by online fraudsters, targeting vulnerable individuals through social media.\n\nAlso, we bust the most common myths around colds and flu. Does going out without a jacket or with wet hair really give you a cold? And the social media trend that sees people sticking raw garlic up their nostrils to clear congestion - con or cure?
Source: BBC 1
Series 3: Episode 15
Ashley John-Baptise joins a group of pensioners in Hertfordshire as they learn how to fall safely. Also on the programme, Dr Xand unpacks the milk aisles in our supermarkets. Ar ...
27-02-2026
BBC 1
Series 3: Episode 14
With weight-loss jabs in high demand, criminals are flooding the market with deadly cheap substitutes. Also on the programme, the growing trend of people using a tobacco-free po ...
26-02-2026
BBC 1
Series 3: Episode 13
The tragic story of a man who hoped his life insurance would pay out to his family after he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, only to discover a clause meant he wasn’ ...
25-02-2026
BBC 1
Series 3: Episode 12
The horrific side effects of a hay fever jab being sold illegally by some beauty clinics. Dr Xand unpacks the myth that fresh is always better and reveals the surprising benefit ...
24-02-2026
BBC 1
Series 3: Episode 11
Dr Xand hears the shocking story of 17,500 women in Northern Ireland who were told their cervical smear results were possibly wrong. Also, as the sale of gut health drinks soars ...
23-02-2026
BBC 1
Series 3: Episode 10
Dr Xand investigates a common prescription drug with horrific withdrawal symptoms. Also on the programme, the effects of late-night eating on sleep and weight gain. And the incr ...
20-02-2026
BBC 1
Series 3: Episode 9
Hundreds of women end up in hospital each year after having cheap bum lifts or breast enlargement jabs that go wrong. We investigate the beauticians illegally offering dodgy inj ...
19-02-2026
BBC 1
Series 3: Episode 8
As 200 people in Scotland call for a public enquiry into their mistreatment by a surgeon, Dr Xand asks what we can do to check out the medical professionals who treat us. With 2 ...
18-02-2026
BBC 1
Series 3: Episode 7
With eight million people in the UK suffering from arthritis, many people are turning to supplements that might help with their pain. But how well do they work? Whooping cough i ...
17-02-2026
BBC 1
Series 3: Episode 6
Ashley John-Baptiste investigates the criminals selling fake or stolen disabled blue badges. Plus, problems with your feet? Dr Xand has the latest gizmos and gadgets for bunions ...
16-02-2026
BBC 1
Series 3: Episode 14
With weight-loss jabs in high demand, criminals are flooding the market with deadly cheap substitutes. Also on the programme, the growing trend of people using a tobacco-free po ...
26-02-2026
BBC 1
Series 2: Episode 7
Around 12 million people in the UK live with hearing issues. Detecting problems with hearing early in life is important. But last summer, the NHS launched an urgent review of pa ...
14-05-2025
BBC 1
Series 1: Episode 6
The incredible story of the woman who can smell Parkinson’s. Seventy-two-year-old Joy first recognised her superpower when she realised she could smell the disease in her ...
10-11-2023
BBC 1
Series 2: Episode 10
New figures reveal that 42 million of us in the UK suffer from allergies, and topping that chart is hay fever. There are dozens of hay fever products available over the counter ...
16-05-2025
BBC 1
Series 1: Episode 5
Epilepsy drug sodium valproate causes birth defects and developmental delay in babies whose mothers take the drug while pregnant. But when Susan got pregnant taking the drug, sh ...
09-11-2023
BBC 1
Series 3: Episode 15
Ashley John-Baptise joins a group of pensioners in Hertfordshire as they learn how to fall safely. Also on the programme, Dr Xand unpacks the milk aisles in our supermarkets. Ar ...
27-02-2026
BBC 1
Series 2: Episode 14
Food intolerance tests have become very popular, especially the cheaper versions found online. Tom from Oxfordshire felt duped by what he was told about them. He parted with mon ...
22-05-2025
BBC 1
Series 2: Episode 15
Skin-lightening creams are popular but can be dangerous. Many such products sold online have chemicals that are banned in the UK and can cause nerve and liver damage or cancer. ...
23-05-2025
BBC 1
Series 2: Episode 5
Tinnitus is a condition that affects one in seven people in the UK and is often described as a ‘ringing in the ears’. For many, it’s a debilitating condition l ...
13-05-2025
BBC 1
Series 3: Episode 11
Dr Xand hears the shocking story of 17,500 women in Northern Ireland who were told their cervical smear results were possibly wrong. Also, as the sale of gut health drinks soars ...
23-02-2026
BBC 1