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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

Deutsche Presse-AgenturHealth & medicine

«!!! Achtung: AN ALLE ELTERN - So wird die zweite Welle ausgelöst!!!» Ein Facebook-Posting sorgt dieser Tage für Aufregung. Darin heißt es: Eltern würden aufgefordert, ihre Kinder in diesem Jahr gegen die Grippe impfen zu lassen. Der Impfstoff, der das H1N1-Virus enthalte, werde den Kindern per Nasenspray verabreicht - und würde genau dorthin gesprüht, wo ein Corona-Abstrich entnommen werde. Nebenwirkungen der Impfung seien unter anderem Schnupfen, Gliederschmerzen, Fieber. «Aufgrund der Symptome wird der Arzt einen PCR-Test anordnen ... was kommt also raus; Corona poitiv, weil nämlich H1N1 ein Coronavirus ist ... und wir wissen ja alle, dass der PCR-Test so unspezifisch ist (Sic!)», heißt es im Posting. Und weiter: «Was haben wir dann im Herbst wenn die Eltern ihre Kinder impfen lassen? OH JA DIE ZWEITE WELLE (Sic!)».

Publisher’s rating: Der Corona-Test reagiert nicht auf Grippeviren wie H1N1. Grippeimpfungen, bei denen das Virus in abgeschwächter verabreicht wird, sind zudem gut verträglich und führen selten zu Symptomen.

The Facebook post claimed that a nasal-spray flu vaccine containing H1N1 could cause cold-like symptoms, lead doctors to order PCR tests, and make those tests report coronavirus—supposedly setting off a second wave. The review examined that specific argument and consulted Arne Simon, a pediatrician at Saarland University Hospital, and Matthias Stoll, an immunologist at Hannover Medical School. Simon said the vaccine was well tolerated and that only a few recipients experienced mild cold-like effects, such as a runny nose. He also said a doctor would not order a coronavirus test simply for those symptoms when aware of the vaccination, and pointed to the Robert Koch Institute’s test criteria. The central premise about the test is contradicted by the account of how the PCR tests work. Stoll explained that H1N1 is an influenza virus, not a coronavirus, and that influenza and coronavirus belong to distinct groups with different structures and genomes. The review says PCR testing for SARS-CoV-2 looks for genetic sequences specific to that virus: the primers used in the tests attach to matching sections of SARS-CoV-2 genetic material, not influenza genetic material. Thus, even if a test were performed after vaccination, the review’s evidence does not support the post’s claim that H1N1 would make it detect coronavirus. The review also provides context for why children were being encouraged to get flu shots: Simon said children play a significant role in transmitting influenza and that preventing flu could help avoid additional strain on the health system during the pandemic. It distinguishes the two vaccine approaches described: children could receive an inactivated vaccine by injection or a live vaccine by nasal spray. The post’s chain of reasoning therefore depends on both misidentifying H1N1 and assuming that a SARS-CoV-2 PCR test reacts to influenza; the review’s account addresses and rejects both assumptions.

Deutsche Presse-AgenturHealth & medicine

Op Facebook circuleert een verhaal van een gearresteerde professor aan de universiteit van Boston. De FBI zou de man hebben opgepakt omdat hij verbonden was aan een laboratoriumonderzoek in de Chinese stad Wuhan, waar het nieuwe coronavirus uitbrak. "Het is nu zo goed als duidelijk dat de corona virus (sic!) een biologische aanval was, gepland en uitgevoerd door China", valt er te lezen. Verder stelt en Chinese expert in het bericht dat je door stoom te inhaleren het coronavirus vernietigt. Maar wat klopt er precies aan dat verhaal?

Publisher’s rating: Het verhaal is een samenvoegsel van twee hoaxen. Het klopt niet dat een Amerikaanse professor aan de universiteit van Boston werd gearresteerd omdat hij het nieuwe coronavirus als biologisch wapen ontwikkelde voor China. Het klopt evenmin dat je door stoom in te ademen het virus vernietigt.

The Facebook post combined two claims: that an American professor at “Boston University” was arrested for developing the coronavirus as a Chinese biological weapon, and that inhaling steam destroys the virus. The review says the professor did teach at nearby Harvard, but was not arrested for developing the virus as a weapon for China. Instead, it says, he was arrested for lying to U.S. authorities and was part of a program to recruit new talent. Those details distinguish the real case described in the review from the post’s alleged reason for the arrest. The review also addresses the steam advice directly. It reports that there is no scientific evidence that steam is effective against SARS-CoV-2. Virologist Piet Maes of KU Leuven explained that most of the virus is already inside cells and that inhaled steam would not be hot enough to inactivate it. The review allows that steam may soothe symptoms such as a cough, but says that this does not mean it acts on the virus. Taken together, the review identifies the post as combining a misleading account of a professor’s arrest with unsupported advice about steam. It reports that fact-checkers at The Quint and AFP had also found the arrest theory false, while separately citing a USA Today fact-check on steam.

Fact CrescendoHealth & medicine

Claim: Trump not said that Roche vaccine ready for Covid 19

Publisher’s rating: False

Fact Crescendo investigated a Facebook post claiming that Donald Trump had announced a Roche COVID-19 vaccine would be introduced the following Sunday. The review says the attached video showed Trump making a national disaster announcement, but that the vaccine claim was added in the post’s caption. The specific question was whether Trump actually said a Roche vaccine was ready or would soon be launched. The review identifies the speaker in the relevant video as Matt Sause, Roche Diagnostics’ North America division head and chief executive, not Trump. It says Sause thanked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for quickly authorizing the company’s test. The review reports that it examined the full video and found no statement by Trump that a coronavirus vaccine would be introduced the following Sunday. The key distinction is that the FDA authorization concerned a test for coronavirus infection, not a vaccine or medicine. Fact Crescendo says Roche itself explained this, and summarizes the evidence as showing that the circulated clip had been misunderstood and edited down to a few seconds. On that evidence, the review rated the claim false.

YouturnHealth & medicine

ஒரு மகிழ்ச்சியான செய்தி இறுதியில் பாண்டிச்சேரி பல்கலைக்கழகத்தின் இந்திய மாணவர் ராமு, கோவிட் 19-க்கான வீட்டு வைத்தியங்களைக் கண்டுபித்தார். இது WHO முதலில் ஒப்புதல் அளித்தது. ஒரு டீஸ்பூன் கருப்பு மிளகு தூள், இரண்டு டீஸ்பூன் தேன் ஒரு சிறிய இஞ்சி சாறு தொடர்ந்து 5 நாட்களுக்கு எடுத்துக் கொண்டால், கொரோனாவின் விளைவு 100% வரை அகற்றப்படலாம் என்பதை அவர் நிரூபித்தார். உலகம் முழுவதும் இந்த சிகிச்சையை எடுக்கத் தொடங்குகிறது. இறுதியாக 2020 இல் ஒரு மகிழ்ச்சியான அனுபவம். உங்கள் எல்லா குழுக்களுக்கும் அனுப்பவும் நன்றி.

Publisher’s rating: Fake

YouturnHealth & medicine

The good news… Ramu, an Indian student at the University of Pondicherry, has finally found home remedies for COVID 19. It was first approved by the WHO. He proved that the effect of corona can be eliminated up to 100% if one teaspoon of black pepper powder, two teaspoons of honey and a little ginger juice are taken continuously for 5 days. The world is starting to take this treatment. Finally, a happy experience in 2020. Thank you, send it to all your groups.

Publisher’s rating: Fake