A few months ago, I saw an article in Huffington Post written by Jim Carrey (you know, the renowned medical scientist, who also dabbles in acting). The article was an autism/vaccine connection screed. As the father of a child who is an autistic, I looked into the vaccine claims years ago, and kept an eye, over the years, on research done in that area. One problem with the claims is no credible scientific evidence has been found which backs them up. Another problem is that, as the result of the loud voices proclaiming this "news", a good many parents have put their own children, and other children at risk by not vaccinating. A third problem is that a certain prominent autism group has been so caught up in the vaccination issue that some prominent scientific officers and board members have felt compelled to leave, which clearly does not "help the cause".
I asked myself when I saw the article by Carrey, married to Jenny McCarthy, another vaccine/autism linker, what is this post doing on one of the most prominent platforms of the so-called reality-based movement? Well, Salon has provided the answer. Links and more below the fold.
In an article posted yesterday, Rahul K. Parikh, MD details myriad examples of postings which make claims which do not conform to current scientific evidence.
Dr. Parikh was drawn to look at the issue when he saw an article which claimed enemas would help prevent swine flu. Here's Parikh detailing his reaction:
This is not exactly first-line advice on influenza prevention. There's no proof that a cleansing program will prevent influenza. In fact, Evans' notion contradicts basic germ theory. Influenza infection is transmitted through respiratory channels and not, like gastrointestinal infections, through contact with fecal matter. And even if people in 1918 did try to protect themselves with enemas -- Evans doesn't cite any historical record -- there's no evidence the practice saved anybody's life. Note to Evans: People did not have a choice between enemas and vaccines in 1918. The first influenza vaccine was developed in the 1940s.
Other claims Parikh describes include claims that women develop thyroid problems due to an inability to assert themselves, so-called candida overgrowth, distance healing and of course the stand against childhood vaccines.
Who edits the Wellness section?
In May, Huffington hired Patricia Fitzgerald, who had previously blogged on the site, to serve as Wellness editor. In Huffington's words, Fitzgerald will add "another layer to the vetting process for posts dealing with medical, health, and nutritional advice." Fitzgerald, an acupuncturist with a master's degree in traditional Chinese medicine and a doctorate in homeopathic medicine, is the author of "The Detox Solution: The Missing Link to Radiant Health, Abundant Energy, Ideal Weight, and Peace of Mind." Her posts had praised actress Jenny McCarthy for healing her son's autism with "biomedical intervention," a menu of "detoxification, and removal of interfering factors, such as yeast, food allergies, viruses, bacteria, and heavy metals," restrictive diets, expensive nutritional supplements and chelation therapy -- all unproven.
Now the Carrey article came out in April, so the hiring of Fitzgerald in May, given her connection to McCarthy, reinforces the sites sympathy for the anti-vaccine camp (in my opinion).
Parikh makes a point of citing a couple of posters who have a strong scientific background, Lloyd I Sederer, MD and Sarah Lovinger, MA, MD.
But the preponderance of health-related articles on HuffPo, in Parikh's opinion, are pap. I encourage you to read the full article, which is much more thorough than I can describe in a diary here. But I leave you with Parikh's final words, in which he decries the value of what he clearly sees to be a dangerous false equivalence on health matters at HuffPo:
In the end, though, a sincere editorial process is about more than offering a range of disciplines. It is about holding writers accountable for the fairness and accuracy of their messages. And right now fairness and accuracy in health and medicine take a back seat to sensationalism and self-promotion on the Huffington Post.