Inaccurate Health Posted on: 2021-05-01 Vaccines do provide immunity and can be used to achieve herd immunity Claim: Vaccines don’t promise immunity and therefore “vaccine herd immunity doesn’t exist”. Source: Instagram, Laura Elizabeth, 2021-04-24
Partially correct Health Posted on: 2021-04-16 Infectious diseases are caused by microorganisms; other factors may determine an individual’s susceptibility to infection, but the microorganism is still the cause Claim: “…a virus is not the cause of an illness. It’s a necessary cause […] but it is not the cause.” Source: Facebook, Lisa Feldman Barrett, 2021-04-06
Incorrect Health Posted on: 2021-04-09 There is currently no cure for AIDS; reports to the contrary are incorrect Claim: AIDS was cured in more than a dozen patients Source: Facebook, Alfredo Bowman, 2019-04-01
Inaccurate Health Posted on: 2021-04-06 The mRNA COVID-19 vaccines aren’t operating systems, and won’t transform the human body into a virus-making factory Claim: The mRNA vaccine is “an operating system that takes over the machinery of your cells” ; “...by the time you get your fourth shot your body will be making all four proteins that make up the COVID-19 virus.” Source: Instagram, Facebook, Damon Jones, Abdul Alim Muhammad, 2021-03-28
Lacks context Health Posted on: 2021-03-26 Going vegan may lead to fewer pandemics, but it won’t eliminate them completely Claim: “In a vegan world there would be no pandemics. 100% of pandemics are zoonotic in origin.” Source: Facebook, Richard Melville Hall (Moby), 2021-03-23
Incorrect Health Posted on: 2021-03-24 Both viruses and bacteria cause disease; pathogenic viruses aren’t naturally created in the body as a response to damage Claim: “You don’t catch viruses, you naturally create them inside of your body”; “bacteria and viruses don’t cause disease.” Source: Facebook, Melissa Sell, 2021-03-17
Inaccurate Health Posted on: 2021-03-12 Mask mandates are associated with reductions in the spread of COVID-19 cases and deaths; contrary to One America News article Claim: “CDC: Face Masks Don’t Prevent COVID-19, Study Finds Masks Have Negligible Impact on Coronavirus Numbers”; CDC “admitted such mandates do not make any statistical difference.” Source: One America News Network, OANN editors, 2021-03-07
Incorrect Health Posted on: 2021-03-02 Bananas may be healthy, but consuming them won’t treat gastrointestinal diseases nor limit the replication of HIV Claim: “Bananas are a powerful antiviral food—so powerful that they have the capacity to repel growth of the retrovirus HIV“ Source: Medical Medium, Anthony William, 2021-02-21