St. Louis on the Air

The American Dental Association calls the mineral fluoride "nature's cavity fighter." But the practice of adding fluoride to drinking water has long been a target of conspiracy theories and opponents of public health measures. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Trump administration's pick to be the next American health secretary, has called fluoride "an industrial waste” associated with various diseases. Dr. Dwight McLeod, dean of A.T. Still University’s Missouri School of Dentistry & Oral Health, and Dr. Poonam Jain, a professor and vice dean at ATSU and the St. Louis Dental Center, discuss fluoride, the scrutiny over its use, and the importance of dental health.

While blank spaces, silences and gaps may appear empty, is true emptiness possible? St. Louis University Professor Jonathan Sawday explores that question — and addresses the opportunities, pitfalls and stories behind such gaps — in his award-winning book, “Blanks, Print, Space, and Void in English Renaissance Literature: An Archaeology of Absence.”

Turning over to a new calendar brings about many declarations around changing habits and making improvements. But you don’t have to create a wholly new version of yourself to do and be better. Nico Marie McNeese is known locally for her skills behind the turntables as DJ Nico Marie and as a yogi to her 190,000 followers on YouTube. She’s combining her love of music, movement and mental wellness in her first album, “Meeting Myself For The First Time.” Multidisciplinary artist Damon Davis helped produce the album and joined her in conversation about the goals of this project and how they collaborated to bring the album to life.

The United States is home to one of the largest populations of people of Korean descent. On the occasion of Korean American Day 2025, we talk with Julia Sim – a decades-long St. Louisan and president of the Korea Academy of St. Louis – about how she’s approached Korean language and culture education, for children and adults. Hyung Kyu Choi, current KASL teacher and parent, also shares personal reflections about language’s place in the experience of diaspora Koreans like himself, and in raising his young Korean American children in St. Louis.

In its series “Unhoused/Unschooled,” the Midwest Newsroom and its regional partners explored the complicated federal system designed to support K-12 public school students experiencing homelessness, particularly in rural communities. Midwest Newsroom managing editor Holly Edgell discusses the reporting project’s mission and conclusion.

Cahokia Mounds in Collinsville hosts about 350,000 visitors each year. Much less well-known are the sites where 27 monuments once stood in St. Louis. The mounds, carefully constructed and engineered by Indigenous people between 800-1350 CE, were destroyed by white settlers to make way for urban development during the 19th century. In this encore episode, “Mound City” author and historian Patricia Cleary details the history of the mounds, the strange paradox of local settlers claiming the moniker of “Mound City” while destroying them, and the mounds’ contribution to the cultural identity of St. Louisans and Americans across the country.

Robbie Daymond was bitten by the acting bug at a young age. The Warrenton native has gone from the stage to the recording booth, bringing life to animated characters like Marvel’s Spider-Man, Japanese anime fan favorites including “Sailor Moon” and “Jujutsu Kaisen” and a host of video games across several genres. Daymond joined the show to discuss his career, the art of voice acting, and some of his favorite characters.

The Joseph Sappington Log House is preparing for the start of its new life with a January 11 groundbreaking at a historic park in Crestwood. Like a giant Lego set, the house was disassembled piece-by-piece in 2022 from its original location in Affton. The house will be rebuilt near the brick home built by Joseph Sappington’s cousin, Thomas Sappington. Antique Logs Unlimited owner Mark Pratt, who has dedicated his life and career to restoring and building historic log homes, discusses the vast work to disassemble and then rebuild the log home. We also meet Dyann Dierkes, president of the Sappington House Foundation and a descendant of Thomas Sappington, who shares the history and meaning behind the home’s preservation.

Lead is a concern not just for people, but for animals. At the World Bird Sanctuary, two Bald Eagles were recently treated after being found with high lead levels. Both eventually died. The sanctuary is now trying to raise more awareness about the danger of lead. Winter is one of the highest risk times for birds to either be shot by hunters or ingest food that's been contaminated with lead, according to World Bird Sanctuary Rehabilitation Director Kira Klebee. Klebee discusses the recent cases of lead-poisoned bald eagles, how hunting and scavenging behaviors are involved in this problem, and what people can do if they see a bird in distress. Klebee also shares her experience at the sanctuary preparing for and treating birds with avian flu.

Founded in 2024 by Main Street Book’s owners Ellen and Andy Hall, and their daughter Emily Schroen, the Main Street Books Literacy Foundation donates new books to elementary schools with students from low income families in St. Charles County. The Halls and fellow founding board member Shana Youngdahl discuss the nonprofit’s origins, and its approach to providing access to book ownership and related experiences that engender positive reading habits to last a lifetime.