Next Question with Katie Couric

As we get older, so many of us notice little changes in our memory: forgetting a name, losing a word mid-sentence, rereading the same paragraph three times. It’s easy to write that off as a normal part of aging. After this conversation, I’m not so sure we should.

In this episode of The Art of Aging, Dr. Rhonda Voskuhl, professor of neurology at UCLA and founding neurologist of UCLA’s Comprehensive Menopause Program, explains how women’s brains change after menopause, and why losing estrogen affects so much more than hot flashes. She makes a distinction I’d never heard before: what we call “brain fog” is really two different things, and only one of them goes away on its own. And with two-thirds of Alzheimer’s patients being women, she believes understanding why could change how we protect our brains.

We also got practical: what kind of exercise actually helps your brain, which brain games are worth your time, how much alcohol is too much, and what genetic and blood tests can (and can’t) tell you about your Alzheimer’s risk. We also talked about why research on women’s brains has lagged so far behind, and what she thinks the next generation of hormone therapy should look like.

Her message stuck with me: if you feel like you’re not as sharp as you used to be, trust your gut, and don’t accept it as just part of getting older.

Thank you to our presenting sponsor, Procter & Gamble, along with Crest Pro-Health and Oral-B, for making this conversation possible.

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Ethel Kennedy was pregnant with her 11th child when her husband, Robert F. Kennedy, was assassinated in 1968. She spent the next five decades raising her children, keeping her faith, and fighting for the causes they shared. In a new book, Ethel Kennedy: The Extraordinary Life and Bold Legacy, Kerry Kennedy tells her mother’s story, from Ethel’s rough-and-tumble childhood and the legendary parties at Hickory Hill to the fearless advocate she became in her own right.

Kerry sits down with Katie to talk about growing up in a house full of chaos and love, learning that her father had been shot when she was just eight, and the deep faith that carried her mother through unimaginable loss. She also opens up about her brother, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whom she calls “extremely dangerous,” and why she keeps the door open to him anyway.

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As I get closer to my 70th birthday, I’ve been thinking a lot about what it really means to age well. That’s what inspired “The Art of Aging,” where I’m talking with leading experts about the science of living healthier, longer. In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Lauren Streicher, clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine and founding medical director of the Northwestern Medicine Center for Sexual Medicine and Menopause, to talk about something almost nobody discusses about getting older: sex. We get into why desire can disappear, why sex can become painful after menopause, and the questions you sent us, from testosterone and pelvic floor therapy to the orgasm gap. Her big message: changes in your sex life aren’t just something you have to accept as you age. In partnership with Northwell’s Katz Institute for Women’s Health.

Want more from Dr. Streicher? Her audiobook Come Again, a candid, science-based guide to sex and pleasure in midlife, is out April 20, 2027, from Simon & Schuster Audio. Preorder here: https://bit.ly/47yjaoY

To Find a Certified Sex Therapist:

American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors, and Therapists (AASECT):

https://www.aasect.org/

To Find a Menopause Doctor or Clinician (Many Menopause experts also have expertise in post menopause sexual medicine):

The Menopause Society:

https://portal.menopause.org/NAMS/NAMS/Directory/Menopause-Practitioner.aspx

The International Society for the Study of Women’s Sexual Health (ISSWSH):

https://www.isswsh.org/

To Find a Pelvic Floor Physical Therapist:

American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) Section on Women’s Health:

https://www.aptapelvichealth.org/ptlocator

Pelvic Floor Physical Therapists Trained by Herman & Wallace Pelvic Rehabilitation Institute:

https://pelvicrehab.com/

Northwell Health's Pelvic Health Navigation Program:

https://www.northwell.edu/katz-institute-for-womens-health/find-care/womens-pelvic-health

Northwell Health's Pelvic floor rehabilitation:

https://www.northwell.edu/rehabilitation-network/services/pelvic-floor-rehabilitation

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Kyle MacLachlan has spent four decades disappearing into other people. He’s been Paul Atreides in Dune, Special Agent Dale Cooper in Twin Peaks, and Trey MacDougal in Sex and the City. Now, in his new memoir Fictional Selves, he’s turning the lens on himself.

On this episode of Next Question, Katie sits down with MacLachlan to talk about the characters that shaped his career and what he’s learned about the man behind them.

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When we talk about aging well, we focus on our hearts, our brains, and our muscles, but we almost never talk about our mouths. After this conversation, I think that’s a big oversight.

In this episode of The Art of Aging, Dr. William Giannobile, Dean of the Harvard School of Dental Medicine, walks me through how our teeth and gums change as we get older, and why what’s happening in your mouth can affect the rest of your body. Roughly half of American adults have some degree of gum disease, and because it’s usually painless until the late stages, he calls it a “silent killer” of teeth.

We also got practical: why tooth loss is not a normal part of aging, how medications can dry out your mouth and accelerate decay, what menopause and bone loss mean for your teeth, why you may be brushing too hard, and whether tongue scrapers, Waterpiks, and whitening trays are worth it. And yes, I asked whether flossing can help you live longer.

I walked away seeing my dental checkups in a whole new light. Taking care of your mouth isn’t just about your smile. It’s about taking care of your whole self. In partnership wtih Crest and Oral-B.

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A breast cancer diagnosis doesn’t just affect the person diagnosed. It can change the lives and relationships of everyone around them. In this episode of Next Question, I spoke with two mothers and their daughters about how breast cancer interrupted their lives and changed their relationships with one another. They share what it was like to navigate a diagnosis together, the emotional toll cancer can take on an entire family, and how their relationships evolved through it all. We’re sharing their stories to shed light on the impact breast cancer can have on patients and the people who love them. Presented in partnership with @EliLillyandCompany.

#LillyPartner #BreastCancerAwarenessMonth #LillyBCStories

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The “I’ve Had It” ladies–Jennifer Welch and Angie “Pumps” Sullivan–have taken social media by storm. The two progressive women from Oklahoma who have, well, had it with the politics of today. Jennifer has written a new book called Not Today, Fascists all about her upbringing surrounded by conservative evangelicals and the connections she’s made between the ultra-religious and the MAGA movement. Katie spoke with Jennifer about her new book, Jennifer’s hopes for the Democratic party, and about the latest moves from the Trump administration.

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Gloria Steinem was more than a feminist icon. She was a pioneering journalist, a tireless activist, and a driving force behind a movement that transformed the lives of generations of women. Following her death at 92, Katie gathered with two of Gloria's closest friends, actress and activist Marlo Thomas and feminist organizer Amy Richards, for a special tribute recorded live at New York's 92nd Street Y. Together, they reflect on Gloria's extraordinary life, from the early days of the women's liberation movement and the founding of Ms. magazine to the friendships and experiences that shaped her deeply held beliefs. They share intimate memories of the woman behind the public figure, discuss her posthumous memoir, An Unexpected Life, and reflect on her commitment to women's rights at a time when many of the gains she fought for are under threat. It's a moving, personal, and at times funny celebration of a woman who never stopped fighting for equality, never lost her sense of humor, and always believed in the power of hope.

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As I get closer to my 70th birthday, I’ve been thinking a lot about what it really means to age well. That’s what inspired “The Art of Aging,” where I’m talking with leading experts about the science of living healthier, longer. In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Stephanie McNally, medical director of Northwell’s Katz Institute for Women’s Health and system director for the Center for Menopause and Midlife Health, to talk about the flawed study that left a generation of women afraid of hormone therapy, what the latest science says about who can safely benefit from it, and how losing estrogen affects everything from our hearts and bones to our brains and skin.. We discuss the options available for women who aren’t candidates for hormone therapy, from cognitive behavioral therapy to acupuncture to new prescription and herbal treatments, and why no woman should feel she has to just grin and bear it. In partnership with Northwell’s Katz Institute for Women’s Health.

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Michael Lewis has an extraordinary ability to help us make sense of the world. Whether he's writing about Wall Street or Silicon Valley, baseball or behavioral economics, he has a way of taking subjects that seem intimidating or opaque and turning them into compelling human stories. In this episode, Katie and Michael sit down to discuss his new book, Blockers, an inside look at the career public servants caught in the unprecedented effort to dramatically reshape the federal government during the second Trump administration. It's an illuminating conversation about the people and institutions that quietly keep the country running, and why understanding their value matters more than ever at this pivotal moment in American history.

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Gun violence remains one of America's most divisive issues. But according to Malcolm Gladwell, much of the debate is focused on the wrong questions. Katie talks with Malcolm Gladwell about his new book, The American Way of Killing, which challenges many of the assumptions that shape the national conversation. They discuss why America experiences so much more violence than its peer nations, the role of policing and prisons, what community policing gets right, and why some of the country's most prominent gun control efforts may be missing the mark. It's a thought-provoking conversation that challenges long-held assumptions and offers a fresh perspective on one of the country's most urgent issues.

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As I get closer to my 70th birthday, I’ve been thinking a lot about what it really means to age well. That’s what inspired “The Art of Aging,” where I’m talking with leading experts about the science of living healthier, longer. In this episode, I’m joined by Stacey E. Rosen, MD, immediate-past volunteer president of the American Heart Association and executive director of Northwell’s Katz Institute for Women’s Health, with whom we are partnering for this series, to talk about heart disease, the leading cause of death in women. We discuss why women have been overlooked in cardiovascular research, the symptoms too many of us miss, and what every woman should know to better understand and protect their heart health. #NorthwellPartner

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Nearly 30 years after Princess Diana’s death, her younger brother, Charles Spencer, is telling his story. In his new book, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, the 9th Earl Spencer writes about the childhood they shared at Park House, Diana’s doubts before marrying Prince Charles, and the tumultuous days following her death in Paris.

Katie talks with Spencer about the revelations that have made headlines: his clashes with the future king over Diana’s funeral, walking behind her coffin alongside William and Harry, and the eulogy the palace tried to vet. They also discuss the backlash to the book, whether Diana would have wanted this story told, and the unique and often lonely grief of losing a sibling.

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The name Danny Meyer is synonymous with the New York City food scene. His restaurants have become Gotham institutions, from Union Square Cafe and Gramercy Tavern to The Modern and, of course, Shake Shack, which started as a small burger stand in Madison Square Park and has since grown into a global chain with more than 700 locations.

In this episode of Next Question, I spoke with Danny about his new book, What Could Possibly Go Right? The Essential Journey to Scale an Enduring Culture, and the lessons he’s learned over four decades as a restaurateur. We talked about failure, leadership, the power of optimism, and how to build a culture that can endure as a business grows.

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Anthony Scaramucci has led a life full of unexpected twists and turns. After building a successful career on Wall Street, he spent a memorable and famously brief 11 days as President Trump's White House communications director. Since then, he's become a bestselling author, co-host of the hit podcast The Rest Is Politics: US, and one of the president's most outspoken critics. His new book, All the Wrong Moves: How Three Catastrophic Decisions Led to the Rise of Trump, argues that today's political divisions didn't emerge overnight. Instead, Scaramucci traces them back to three bipartisan policy decisions that he believes fundamentally reshaped the American Dream and paved the way for our current political moment. In this conversation, Katie and Anthony discuss where he thinks America went wrong, what he's learned from his own unlikely journey, and why he believes understanding the past is the first step toward rebuilding the future.

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Patti Smith has spent decades turning her life into art as a poet, musician, artist, and author. In her new book, Bread of Angels, she goes back to the very beginning, tracing the people and moments that formed her, from childhood and her creative awakening to marriage, motherhood, and the present day.

In this conversation, Patti talks with Katie about the relationships that shaped her, the losses she’s carried and what they’ve taught her, and how she’s held on to her sense of self through every chapter of her life. She also reflects on creativity, memory, and what it means to look back on a life that’s still unfolding. Bread of Angels is out now in paperback.

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With less than 50 days until the midterm elections, major battles are already underway over voting rights, election rules, redistricting, and how Americans vote.

Katie Couric sits down with Marc Elias, a leading election lawyer, founder of Democracy Docket, and founder of Elias Law Group, to discuss the legal fights shaping the 2026 midterms.

They discuss the Supreme Court’s recent rulings on mail-in voting, rapidly changing congressional maps, voter rolls, election security, and what could happen if election results are challenged after Election Day.

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In 2016, NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick made global headlines when he decided to take a knee during the National Anthem in response to a spate of killings of young Black men by police in a number of cities across the country: Baltimore, Baton Rouge, Minneapolis, San Francisco, Now, 10 years after he first refused to stand during the Star-Spangled Banner, he’s written a memoir called The Perilous Fight.

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Katie sits down with Dr. Sharon Malone at the Aspen Institute to talk about why women's health has been under-researched and under-funded for centuries -- which also happens to be the subject of Katie's new documentary, HORMONAL!. The numbers are staggering: PMS affects 90% of women but gets a fraction of the funding erectile dysfunction research receives. The NIH didn't require women to be included in clinical trials until 1993. Katie also shares how her own breast cancer diagnosis has shaped her relationship to hormone therapy. It's a candid, infuriating, ultimately hopeful conversation about what it will take to close the gender gap in medicine.

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Rob Lowe is best known for his decades in Hollywood, from The West Wing to Parks and Recreation and beyond. In this episode of Next Question, I spoke with him about his career, his long marriage, and his family’s experience with cancer — including how a clinical trial helped extend his grandmother’s life after her breast cancer diagnosis. We also discussed why he’s become an advocate for helping people better understand what cancer clinical trials are and how they work in cancer care.

Presented in partnership with@EliLillyandCompany

#LillyPartner

#sponsored

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