SciCheck Archives - Page 6 of 59

Posts Exaggerate Significance of Swiss Study on Heart Risk and COVID-19 Vaccination

August 11, 2023

A Swiss study found that after a COVID-19 booster, less than 3% of people briefly had a slightly elevated blood level of a protein that can be a marker of heart injury. No one in the study had any serious heart damage, and other experts say the findings are unlikely to be clinically significant. Viral posts, however, are spinning the results to falsely claim that the study shows the vaccine’s risks are “off the scale.”

RFK Jr.’s COVID-19 Deceptions

August 11, 2023

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s battle against vaccines — and against the institutions that promote them — goes back to at least the mid-2000s, as we explain in the first article of this series. But the arrival of COVID-19 gave the environmental attorney fresh grounds to intensify his attacks and a timely platform to gain new followers and revenue.

What RFK Jr. Gets Wrong About Autism

August 10, 2023

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. makes a variety of incorrect or misleading claims about vaccines, COVID-19 and other health-related topics. But his views on vaccines rose to prominence when he began to advance the thoroughly debunked idea that they cause autism.

FactChecking Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

August 9, 2023

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a prominent anti-vaccine advocate, is running for president as a Democrat. Our SciCheck team has combed through his recent interviews to identify and correct some of his most common health claims in a three-part series. In this first installment, we address several of his talking points about vaccines.

Posts Share Fabricated Quote on ‘Permanent Climate Lockdowns’

August 4, 2023

In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Economic Forum proposed an initiative to reform economic and social systems, called the “Great Reset.” But a 2020 video of WEF’s Nicole Schwab discussing this initiative never showed her saying that “permanent climate lockdowns” were coming, contrary to claims in a widely shared article.

Video: Fewer Cases of Flu Due to Pandemic Precautions

July 26, 2023

Influenza cases decreased during the first years of the pandemic, likely because of measures adopted to stop the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19. In this video, FactCheck.org teamed up with Factchequeado to debunk a viral post that falsely implied the decrease in flu cases meant that COVID-19 was a hoax.

Pfizer Facility Damaged in Tornado Didn’t Produce COVID-19 Vaccines

July 25, 2023

No COVID-19 vaccines were affected by the tornado that damaged Pfizer’s North Carolina warehouse, which doesn’t produce the vaccines. But some misinformation spreaders are claiming vaccines were destroyed.

False Claim About Cause of Autism Highlighted on Pennsylvania Senate Panel

July 21, 2023

Studies have found the rate of autism is the same in vaccinated and unvaccinated children. But the false claim that vaccines are associated with the disorder persists. A prominent spreader of COVID-19 misinformation wrongly told legislators in Pennsylvania that autism is virtually nonexistent among the unvaccinated, citing the Amish population.

Thermography Is No Substitute for Mammograms, Contrary to Facebook Post’s Advice

July 21, 2023

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration considers mammograms “the most effective primary breast cancer screening test” and says there is no evidence to indicate that thermography can replace mammograms. But an article shared on Facebook tells people to “stop getting mammograms” and try thermography instead.

U.S.-Acquired Malaria Cases Spark False Claims of Links to Gates-Funded Research

July 18, 2023

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation supports research into fighting malaria, including funding a company that releases genetically modified mosquitoes that are incapable of carrying the disease. But reports of locally acquired cases of malaria in the U.S. have sparked social media posts that baselessly suggest Gates was behind the recent outbreak.