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PeakMetrics / Fact Checks

Health & medicine fact checks

Explore claims publishers have checked about health & medicine. Read their original ratings and follow the evidence.

13,676 published reviews in this topic

FACTLYHealth & medicine

List of 7 biggest brain-damaging habits by WHO

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

The post attributed a list of seven “brain-damaging habits” to the World Health Organization. FACTLY says it checked that attribution and reports that, when the same claim circulated in Nigeria, the International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR) contacted WHO officials. According to FACTLY, those officials clarified that the message had not originated from WHO. On that basis, the review concludes that WHO did not release the list. The review also distinguishes the false attribution from the possible health effects of the habits. It says the habits do not directly cause brain damage, while warning that some may have adverse effects when done in excess. Its discussion of the seven items does not treat them as a single scientifically established set: for example, it reports no direct link between missing breakfast and brain damage, and no research showing that wearing socks to sleep causes cognitive decay. It separately notes potential effects such as appetite changes from skipping breakfast and improved sleep quality from warming the feet with bed socks. For other items, FACTLY describes risks or qualifications rather than evidence that the listed behavior directly damages the brain. It says excessive sugar consumption has been linked in studies to reduced cognitive function, anxiety, and insulin resistance; distracted eating may lead people to eat more, but the review says no connection with cognitive function was found. It also notes that holding urine for too long may weaken bladder muscles and increase risks including urinary tract infections. The evidence presented therefore supports rejecting the claim that WHO issued this list, while giving a more qualified account of possible effects of individual habits.

Fact CrescendoHealth & medicine

Claim: VGP Dass not died in Covid 19

Publisher’s rating: False

The rumor concerned Das, a performer known for standing motionless as a “statue man” at VGP Universal Kingdom in Chennai. The review says he had done this work for many years, but the venue’s closure during the COVID-19 pandemic left him among those who had lost work. It reports that coverage of his employment difficulties used headlines about COVID-19 disrupting his life; social media users apparently read those headlines as saying he had died. The review describes that interpretation as the source of the death rumor, rather than evidence that a death had occurred. To check whether Das was alive, the review points to a video statement from Das explaining his situation. It says VGP Universal Kingdom, where he worked, officially released the video. On that basis, the investigation concludes that Das had not died and that posts saying he was dead were false. The excerpt does not provide the video itself or details of any additional independent verification, so the conclusion here rests on the evidence and account described in the review.

Deutsche Presse-AgenturHealth & medicine

Zur Diagnose einer Corona-Infektion wird in Deutschland und anderen Ländern ein sogenannter PCR-Test eingesetzt. Der Virologe Christian Drosten hat den ersten Test dieser Art auf das Coronavirus Sars-CoV-2 entwickelt. Im Internet kursiert nun die Behauptung, die «New York Times» habe diesen Test als «größten Betrug der Geschichte» bezeichnet (hier archiviert).

Publisher’s rating: Falsch. Die «New York Times» hat dies nicht geschrieben, wie die Zeitung der Deutschen Presse-Agentur bestätigt hat. Das Zitat stammt womöglich aus einem US-Blog, in dem ein Artikel der Zeitung kommentiert wurde.

APA - Austria Presse AgenturHealth & medicine

Bis zu 50 Prozent der Blutspender haben laut der MedUni Wien eine Immunität gegen Sars-CoV‑2.

Publisher’s rating: Das ist teilweise falsch. Sogenannte T‑Zellen lassen sich finden und können laut der „Virusepidemiologischen Information” Nr. 18/20 der Medizinischen Universität Wien unter anderem für eine schnellere Virusabwehr bei einer Infektion mit dem Coronavirus sorgen. Von einer Immunität gegenüber Sars-CoV‑2 ist jedoch nicht die Rede. Zudem müsse laut der Universität generell noch geklärt werden, ob und wie die T‑Zellen die Immunantwort auf eine SARS-CoV‑2 Infektion oder den Krankheitsverlauf beeinflussen können.

BBC Reality CheckHealth & medicine

Covid-19 was created in a laboratory

Publisher’s rating: The BBC science team has looked at claims that coronavirus was released from a lab and found no credible scientific evidence. We spoke to other scientists who dismissed the scientific basis for the Chinese scientist's claims.

BBC Reality CheckHealth & medicine

Masks can give you pleurisy

Publisher’s rating: Medical experts say there is no evidence masks can cause pleurisy - an inflammation of the tissue around the lungs, sometimes caused by an infection