Facebook reel propagates vaccine and statin misinformation from health book author Raymond Francis

A Facebook reel uploaded in July 2024 claimed that “No vaccine has ever been proven to be safe” and implied vaccines cause autism, ADHD and cancer. It also claimed “statins provide no benefit” and “poison you to death”. This YouTube video, which was uploaded nearly ten years ago, shows that the reel is an excerpt of a 2015 presentation by the late Raymond Francis, titled “The Great American Health Hoax: Why Getting Sick is a Big Mistake You Can Avoid”.

At the time of writing, the YouTube video received 120,000 views; the Facebook reel drew more than 775,000 views in less than two months.

Francis, who passed away in 2020, published a series of books with titles like “Never Be Sick Again” and “Never Be Fat Again”. The author biography of his books described him as “a chemist by training and a graduate of MIT”, and at least one book described him as an “MIT-trained scientist”.

These descriptions, along with the medical theme of these books, suggest that Francis was medically trained. However, this blog post from Beyond Health, a company founded by Francis, indicated that his qualifications were in engineering and chemistry. The books also listed Doctor of Science (DSc) and Registered Nurse Certified (RNC) as titles held by Francis, but we were unable to find a public record of where and when he obtained these qualifications.

The claims about vaccines and statins made by Francis during his presentation are inaccurate, as we will explain below.

Published studies established that vaccines don’t cause autism, cancer, or ADHD

Science Feedback debunked the false claims that vaccines cause autism in previous reviews. As explained in those reviews, multiple published studies have found no association between childhood vaccines and an increased risk of autism.

The American Academy of Pediatrics compiled a list of studies here, demonstrating that childhood vaccines aren’t linked to an increased risk of autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders.

We also addressed the false claim that vaccines cause cancer here, explaining that there’s no association between childhood vaccines and an increased risk of cancer. We also explained in the same review that there’s no plausible mechanism through which vaccines would cause cancer.

The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute states that vaccines in general don’t cause cancer.

An earlier review also explained that vaccinated children aren’t more likely to experience adverse health outcomes compared to unvaccinated children, showing that childhood vaccination isn’t associated with poorer health.

The Vaccine Education Center at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia summarized results from three large studies which showed that vaccines don’t cause ADHD, or attention-deficit hyperactive disorder. ADHD is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders. In particular, a study published in 2010 found no association between timely vaccination in the first year of life with adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes^[1].

In summary, the scientific evidence refutes Francis’ claim that vaccines are unsafe.

Statins help prevent heart attack and stroke in at-risk groups

Apart from vaccines, Francis also targeted statins during his presentation, claiming that they “provide no benefit”.

Statins are a type of drug that reduces the amount of cholesterol made by the liver and helps the liver remove cholesterol from the blood. They are listed in the World Health Organization’s 2023 Model List of Essential Medicines.

Cholesterol is a waxy substance that the body needs to make hormones, vitamin D, and substances to aid digestion. However, excess cholesterol contributes to the formation of fatty deposits (plaque) that stick to the walls of blood vessels. These deposits obstruct blood flow, preventing tissues from getting the oxygen they need. This can lead to coronary artery disease and cardiovascular events like heart attack and stroke.

By reducing the amount of cholesterol in the body, statins help reduce the risk of these events. They are typically prescribed as a preventative medicine for people who have high cholesterol levels or factors that increase their risk of coronary heart disease, such as high blood pressure or diabetes (primary prevention). They are also prescribed to those who have had a heart attack or stroke to prevent these events from occurring again (secondary prevention).

Francis’ claim is refuted by published studies showing that statins are effective at lowering blood cholesterol levels and reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease.

A review published in 2016, led by researchers at the University of Oxford, evaluated a variety of statin studies, including randomized clinical trials. The authors reported that statins reduced the rate of major cardiovascular problems like heart attack and stroke, and that this reduction correlated with a reduction in blood cholesterol levels^[2]. They also found that these benefits persisted for years if a person continued to take statins.

A review published in 2022, conducted by researchers at the Oregon Health & Science University, examined randomized clinical trials to assess the benefits of statins for primary prevention of cardiovascular disease. The authors reported that statins reduced the risk of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular events^[3]. It also added:

“Benefits of statin therapy appear to be present across diverse demographic and clinical populations, with consistent relative benefits in groups defined by demographic and clinical characteristics.”

In summary, Francis’ claim that statins “provide no benefit” is false. The benefits of statins for people at risk of cardiovascular disease are well-established by randomized clinical trials. These trials show that statins reduce the rate of cardiovascular events like heart attack and stroke, as well as cardiovascular-related mortality.

Claims about statin harms exaggerate risks or aren’t substantiated by evidence

Despite their benefits, concerns over statin safety are common, thanks in part to headlines in the news that widely publicized statin harms, perceived or actual. The European Society of Cardiology and the British Heart Foundation published articles aimed at dispelling statin myths. Some of these myths were also propagated by Francis in the video.

Specifically, Francis claimed statins cause diabetes, memory loss, and cancer. But of the three, only new-onset type II diabetes has been established as a potential side effect of statins^{[4, 5]}. It’s also important to note that this side effect tends to appear in people who are already borderline diabetic (prediabetes). Moreover, the risk of this side effect is outweighed by the cardiovascular benefits of statins.

In 2018, the American Heart Association published a scientific statement and evaluation of data regarding statin safety. It found that the risk of statin-induced new-onset diabetes was roughly 0.2% per year of treatment, although this depended on the population studied^[6].

But it found “no convincing evidence” showing statins cause cancer, cognitive dysfunction, and peripheral neuropathy.

Science Feedback addressed the unsubstantiated claim that statins cause Alzheimer’s and memory loss in an earlier review. It showed that multiple clinical trials found no association between cognitive decline and statin use. Among these trials are the PROSPER trial, which included people from Scotland, Ireland, the Netherlands, and the U.K.^[7], as well as the ASPREE trial in Australia and the U.S.^[8].

The 2016 review by Oxford researchers, cited earlier, also found no reliable evidence showing that statins cause cognitive decline^[2].

In summary, the evidence does show that statins can lead to type II diabetes in people who already have higher than normal blood sugar. However, this risk is outweighed by the cardiovascular benefits from statins. No convincing evidence supports the claim that statins cause memory loss or cancer.

Misinformation about the safety of statins leads some patients to avoid or to stop taking statins, which can result in real-world harm: one study performed in Denmark found that those who stopped taking statins within six months of starting therapy were about 20% more likely to have a heart attack in the next ten years, compared to those who continued to take statins^[9]. In addition, the former were about 18% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease than the latter.

Conclusion

The Facebook reel propagates common misinformation about vaccines and statins, which are refuted by the scientific evidence. Studies show that vaccines aren’t associated with a greater risk of autism, ADHD, and cancer. Therefore, they don’t support the claim that vaccines cause these conditions.

Studies also show that statins play an important role in reducing the rate of cardiovascular disease and mortality in at-risk groups. Like any drug, statins can cause certain side effects, such as raising the risk of type II diabetes in people with high blood sugar. On balance, however, their benefits outweigh their risks.

REFERENCES

• 1 – Smith and Woods. (2010) On-time Vaccine Receipt in the First Year Does Not Adversely Affect Neuropsychological Outcomes. Pediatrics.
• 2 – Collins et al. (2016) Interpretation of the evidence for the efficacy and safety of statin therapy. The Lancet.
• 3 – Chou et al. (2022) Statin Use for the Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease in Adults: Updated Evidence Report and Systematic Review for the US Preventive Services Task Force. JAMA.
• 4 – Shah and Goldfine. (2012) Statins and Risk of New-Onset Diabetes Mellitus. Circulation.
• 5 – Cholesterol Treatment Trialists’ (CTT) Collaboration. (2024) Effects of statin therapy on diagnoses of new-onset diabetes and worsening glycaemia in large-scale randomised blinded statin trials: an individual participant data meta-analysis. The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology.
• 6 – Newman et al. (2018) Statin Safety and Associated Adverse Events: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association. Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology.
• 7 – Shepherd et al. (2002) Pravastatin in elderly individuals at risk of vascular disease (PROSPER): a randomised controlled trial. The Lancet.
• 8 – Zhou et al. (2021) Effect of Statin Therapy on Cognitive Decline and Incident Dementia in Older Adults. Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
• 9 – Nielsen and Nordestgaard. (2016) Negative statin-related news stories decrease statin persistence and increase myocardial infarction and cardiovascular mortality: a nationwide prospective cohort study. European Heart Journal.