Mainstream Media
'Mainstream media's credibility has
been diminishing for years. But the trend has attracted renewed attention from news leaders and analysts
since the 2024 presidential election, when many outlets again misjudged the electoral chances of President-elect Donald Trump.'
Human Longevity
'For years, "blue zones,"
regions around the world where people allegedly live significantly longer than average, have been celebrated as places where people have unlocked
the secret to living a healthy life. However, a recent study cast doubt on the validity of blue zones, suggesting that longevity in these regions
may have less to do with health habits and more to do with poor record-keeping or fraud.1 While this study-a preprint that hasn't been peer-reviewed-was
posted back in March, it's been gaining attention on social media after study author Saul Justin Newman, a research fellow at the Oxford Institute of Population Aging, won the Ig Nobel Award in Demography, a satirical science award, for this research in September.'
Preview paper 'Supercentenarian and remarkable age records exhibit patterns indicative of clerical errors and pension fraud'
here.
Black plastic utensils
Contrary to a recent research paper, your
black plastic kitchen utensils may not be dangerous after all: 'Editors of the environmental chemistry journal Chemosphere have posted an eye-catching
correction to a study reporting that toxic flame retardants from electronics wind up in some household products made of black plastic, including kitchen
utensils. The study sparked a flurry of media reports a few weeks ago that urgently implored people to ditch their kitchen spatulas and spoons. Wirecutter
even offered a buying guide for what to replace them with. The correction, posted Sunday, will likely take some heat off the beleaguered utensils. The
authors made a math error that put the estimated risk from kitchen utensils off by an order of magnitude.'
Influencers selling fake cures for polycystic ovary syndrome
'Up to 70% of women with PCOS worldwide have not been diagnosed, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), and even when diagnosed, women struggle
to find treatments that work.' According to gynaecologist and women's health educator Dr Jen Gunter, 'Whenever there's a gap in medicine,
predators take advantage'. 'The main false or misleading claims shared by these influencers include: PCOS can be cured with dietary supplements;
PCOS can be cured with a diet, such as the low-carbohydrate high-fat keto diet; birth control pills cause PCOS or worsen symptoms; mainstream medication may
suppress PCOS, but doesn't address its "root cause"' There is no evidence that highly restricted calorie diets have any positive effect, and the keto diet
may make symptoms worse. Birth control pills do not cause PCOS and in fact help many women, though they don't work for everyone. There is no known root cause
for PCOS and there is no cure.'
Steven Bartlett
'Diary of a CEO host Steven Bartlett is amplifying harmful health misinformation
on his number-one ranked podcast, a BBC investigation has found. Recent claims from guests - including that cancer can be treated by following a keto diet,
rather than proven treatments - were allowed by the Dragons' Den star with little or no challenge. Experts have told us failing to question these disproven
claims is dangerous because it creates a distrust of conventional medicine. In an analysis of 15 health-related podcast episodes, BBC World Service found each
contained an average of 14 harmful health claims that went against extensive scientific evidence.’
Slapping Therapy
'A judge jailing
a "dangerous" alternative healer over the death of a diabetic woman at his slapping therapy workshop warned there "is a significant risk
history will again repeat itself". Danielle Carr-Gomm, 71, was "howling in pain" and "frothing at the mouth" before she died on the fourth day of the Paida
Lajin therapy event in October 2016, where patients are slapped or slap themselves repeatedly. A court heard the pensioner had wanted to call an ambulance
but the defendant, who she believed was a "messenger sent by God", failed to get medical help after telling her "well done" when she said she was no longer
taking her insulin medication. Hongchi Xiao, of Cloudbreak in California, was convicted in July by a jury at Winchester Crown Court of the manslaughter by
gross negligence of Carr-Gomm, from Lewes in East Sussex. The 61-year-old was extradited for the trial from Australia, where he had previously been prosecuted
over the death of a six-year-old boy who also died after his parents withdrew his insulin medication after attending the defendant's workshop in Sydney.'
Water Fluoridation
'Robert F. Kennedy Jr., U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's choice to head the Department of Health and Human Services, has said Trump will call for
an end to adding fluoride to public water supplies.
… Kennedy has claimed in the absence of conclusive evidence that water fluoridation at U.S. levels is associated with numerous health issues including cancer.'
But: 'The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has called fluoridation of drinking water one of the nation's top 10 public health achievements
of the 20th century, noting that it effectively prevents tooth decay regardless of a person's socioeconomic status or access to care.'
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.,
Donald Trump's pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, is well known for his anti-vaccine stance and dabbling in junk science. But ahead of his
potential confirmation, more details of his conspiracist views on Covid-19 have come to light - including the fact that Children's Health Defense, a nonprofit he
helped found, financed one of the most viral misinformation campaigns of the pandemic.
Whooping Cough
'Whooping cough cases across Australia have passed 40,000 in a year for the first time since recording began more than 30 years ago. To November 6,
there had been 41,013 cases confirmed across the country, passing the 38,748 cases recorded in 2011. … Dr Laurence Luu, Chancellor's Research Fellow and Lecturer
at University of Technology Sydney said low vaccination rates are a major concern amid the surge in cases. "While we do an incredible job protecting newborns
and infants, re-vaccination or 'booster' rates are alarmingly low," he said.'
Climate Change and Volcanoes
'A recent report from the Icelandic
Meteorological Office suggests that magma is building up underground near a volcano known as Askja, a mountain about the size of Mount St. Helens in Vatnajokull
National Park in Iceland's central highlands. Although volcanic eruptions are difficult to predict accurately, this indicates a high likelihood that Askja
may erupt in the near future. … Researchers funded by the Icelandic government believe that the rapid retreat of glaciers due to climate change is raising
the threat to their nation, and may foreshadow increased volcanic activity all over the world. As glacial ice melts, the downward pressure on Earth's thin outer crust
eases, causing the ground to rebound. That can cause the dynamic subterranean forces below volcanoes to produce increased quantities of magma, leading to more frequent
eruptions.'
Rogue Therapists
'High-profile figures from the world of politics, entertainment and mental health campaigners are calling on the Government to regulate psychotherapy in the wake of
The i Paper's investigation exposing
therapists who have been struck off but continue to see vulnerable patients. Alastair Campbell, Tony Blair's former spokesman and podcaster, comedian Ruby Wax and
TV medic Dr Ranj Singh have joined MPs from across Parliament to demand action after cases of therapists involved in the sexual exploitation of clients were unearthed by
i and discovered to still be working as therapists. Mr Campbell and Ms Wax, who both campaign on mental health issues, have called it "plain wrong" and "appalling"
that there are no regulations to stop those guilty of serious misconduct from continuing to see clients.'
Water Fluoridation
From Christopher Labos MD, MSc of McGill University: 'The City of Montreal contemplates stopping the West Island's water fluoridation program.
I will try to make the case that fluoride is good for dental health
and that it does not affect the brain development of young children.' Also see here on the website (pages 2-5)
Fluoridation and the Nazis.
Children Identifying as Cats
According to the Times, October 15: 'Russia is cracking down on children identifying as cats and other animals after a powerful ally of President
Putin said the trend was part of a western plot to turn people into slaves. The teenage subculture, known in Russian as "kvadrobing", has
made headlines in Russia, as well as in western countries. Schools in Britain and the United States have previously been forced to deny
fake reports that they provide litter boxes for children who come to lessons as cats. Vyacheslav Volodin, the Russian parliamentary chairman,
alleged that the trend had been instigated by Brussels and Washington as part of a "dehumanisation" project that aimed to turn people into
"silent puppets" without rights.' The same story was reported in
the Independent.
Longevity Claims
'Australian Dr Saul Newman from Oxford Institute of Population Ageing has been awarded an Ig Nobel Prize for
his work
debunking the idea that people in Okinawa, Japan, Sardinia in Italy and Greece live longer lives than average. These long-lived people we've
been taking "lifestyle tips from" are "mostly corpses," Newman told RNZ's Afternoons. … "I found out that at least 72 percent of the people
in Greece over the age of 100, thousands of people, they're all dead. "These numbers come from the people handing out the pensions, and
they've been handing out the pensions for 100-year-olds despite the fact that these people are dead. "It's extraordinary to have a ton
of science based off this, because, like, what are you going to conclude? Essentially it's nonsense." Okinawans, it is claimed, live
long healthy lives because of among other things, their love of veggies. "The Japanese government actually asked Okinawans since 1975
they've asked them about their nutrition, and they've always been dead last out of 47 regions of Japan. "They're always last in terms
of eating sweet potatoes, in terms of eating their veggies full stop. They're always last. None of this stuff stacks up." In all these
regions record keeping, the basis on which these longevity claims are made, was decidedly poor, he said. "It's wild. There were 230,000
people in Japan that were alive on paper and dead in reality - 230,000. It's incredible. Greece was roughly 8000." In fact, he said,
Okinawans were among the least healthy people in Japan.'
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