Consumer Health Digest is a free weekly e-mail newsletter edited by William M. London, Ed.D., M.P.H., with help from Stephen Barrett, M.D., It summarizes scientific reports; legislative developments; enforcement actions; other news items; Web site evaluations; recommended and nonrecommended books; research tips; and other information relevant to consumer protection and consumer decision-making. The Digestâs primary focus is on health, but occasionally it includes non-health scams and practical tips. Items posted to this archive may be updated when relevant information becomes available. To subscribe, click here.
Vaccination alarmism by chiropractors spotlighted. The egregious anti-vaccination activities of an influential minority of chiropractors were described in two reports published last week. [Bellamy J. Anti-vaccination ideology and COVID misinformation in chiropractic continuing education courses: âPlandemicâ edition. Science-Based Medicine, Oct 7, 2021; Smith MR and others. Anti-vaccine chiropractors rising force of misinformation. Associated Press, Oct 8, 2021] Key findings include:
- The Chiropractic Society of Wisconsinâs sold-out VAX-CON â21 convention for chiropractors, their staff, and the general public was advertised as offering âthe uncensored truthâ but instead promoted misinformation and baseless conspiracies. Its speakers included: (a) Judy Mikovits, PhD, who featured prominently in the 2020 video âPlandemicâ; (b) Del Bigtree, producer of the widely discredited âdocumentaryâ VAXXED; (c) James Neuenschwander, M.D., who offers dubious CEASE therapy for autism and intravenous therapies at his Bio Energy Medical Center; (d) Alan Palmer, D.C., a promoter of dubious treatments for non-musculoskeletal conditions and author of an anti-vaccine book; (e) Vicki Pebsworth, Ph.D, R.N., a board member of the anti-vaccine organization NVIC; and (f) âalternative vaccine scheduleâ promoter Bob Sears, M.D., whose talk with âhealth freedom educatorâ Melissa Floyd was geared to the general public.
- VAX-CON â21 was approved for 12 continuing-education hours available through Life University for chiropractors and their staff. Life University President Rob Scott said that 10 states have accepted the program for continuing-education credit. Brian Wussow, D.C., vice president of the Chiropractic Society of Wisconsin, told a state Senate committee that more than 400 chiropractors and 100 chiropractic technicians from Minnesota, South Dakota, Illinois, Iowa, and Kansas attended the convention..
- Del Bigtree was a featured speaker, along with anti-vaccination propagandists Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Barbara Loe Fisher, and the disgraced and delisted physician, Andrew Wakefield, at a 2018 chiropractic âpediatricsâ conference that also awarded state-approved CE credit to attendees.
- Chiropractor Tedd Koren continues to promote the irresponsible pamphlet Vaccination: 18 Reasons to Just Say No for distribution in chiropractic clinics and teaches a 12-part âNeuroimmunology and Vaccinesâ course eligible for chiropractic continuing-education credit via the Federation of Chiropractic Licensing Boardâs PACE CE course program. Chiropractors can also obtain continuing-education credit for Korenâs âVaccinesâ series via the Florida Board of Chiropractic Medicineâs CE Brokerwebsite.
- The Texas Chiropractic College, offers a course called âImmunization, Inoculation or Vaccination: Navigating the Consequences with Clinical Nutrition,â which promotes dubious nutritional interventions for supposed vaccine toxicity.
- ChiroCredit, a continuing education provider approved by the Federation of Chiropractic Licensing Boards, offers âVarying Viewpoints on Vaccinations with Alternative Schedule and Homeopathic Remedies,â which irresponsibly promotes homeopathic nosodes as vaccination alternatives. Nebraska chiropractor Ben Tapper is among the âDisinformation Dozen,â a list compiled by the Center for Countering Digital Hate, that says he is among the small group of people responsible for nearly two-thirds of anti-vaccine content online.
- The Florida Chiropractic Associationâs ChiroLearn offers a continuing-education course on âPublic Perception of Chiropractic: What the Research Shows,â which features COVID-19 misinformation superspreader and Disinformation Dozen designee #1, Dr. Joe Mercola, and chiropractor Patrick Gentempo, a chiropractic practice-building entrepreneur and producer of the anti-vaccination video series Vaccines Revealed.
- A chiropractic seminar and expo called Cal Jam, run by chiropractor Billy DeMoss, claimed to have raised a half-million dollars for Robert F. Kennedy, Jrâs anti-vaccine group Childrenâs Health Defense, counting for about one-sixth of the organizationâs revenue in 2019.
- Tapper and DeMoss were featured speakers at a series of âHealth Freedom Revivalsâ held by the Chiropractic Society of Wisconsin.
- The International Chiropractors Association (ICA) removed from its website a statement that âquestions the wisdom of mass vaccination programsâ and opposes “compulsory” vaccine programs that infringe upon âfreedom of choice.â However, Beth Clay, ICA executive director and an anti-vaccine activist, said the statement remains official.
- A larger chiropractic group, the American Chiropractic Association, adopted a new position statement on vaccines in June that does not take a position for or against them.
- Dozens of chiropractors used their own websites to spread doubt about vaccines against COVID-19 and other diseases.
- In Oregon, chiropractors and their assistants are less likely than all other types of health professionals surveyed to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
- Since 2019, chiropractors and chiropractor-backed groups have worked to influence vaccine-related legislation and policy in at least 24 states.
- Some chiropractors have anti-vaccine ads on Facebook and Instagram. One California chiropractor was found to have pushed a link to Ty and Charlene Bollinger’s disinformation-filled video series about vaccines to earn affiliate commissions.
Anti-vaccine cardiologist sued, risks loss of board certification. Baylor Scott & White Health is seeking $1 million in a lawsuit filed in July against Peter A. McCullough, M.D., MPH for allegedly spreading COVID-19 misinformation under the Baylor name in media interviews. The lawsuit alleges that, since leaving Baylor, he âhas conducted dozens, if not hundreds, of interviews in print and video appearancesâ while appearing to hold titles related to Baylor. In February, McCullough left his position as vice chief of internal medicine for cardiovascular disease at Baylor University Medical Center and agreed ânot to state that he is employed by or affiliatedâ with the health system. [Osborne R. Lawsuit: Former Baylor Scott & White doctor used Baylor title while spreading COVID-19 misinformation. WFAA News, Aug 26, 2021] A District Court has granted a temporary restraining order prohibiting any affiliation with the plaintiffs. McCullough has spread alarm about the safety of COVID-19 vaccines and promoted an unproven cocktail of drugs to treat COVID-19. He has promoted his misinformation at a U.S. Senate hearing, on the YouTube channel of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, and on âThe Ingraham Angleâ on Fox News. He is no longer affiliated with the Texas A&M College of Medicine or the TCU and UNTHSC School of Medicine in Fort Worth, Texas, where he was a professor of medicine. [Ault A. Baylor gets restraining order against COVID vaccine skeptic doc. Medscape, Sept 16, 2021] McCullough continues to spread COVID-19 misinformation. At a recent community-center event, he shared what he said was âa threatening letter from the American Board of Internal Medicine warning that he could lose his certification for spreading misinformation.â [Riley S. Doctor fired for spreading COVID misinformation finds supportive crowd in Bartlesville. Bartlesville Examiner Enterprise, Oct 6, 2021]
Fox News criticized for promoting false information about COVID-19 vaccination. A Media Matters analysis has concluded:
Foxâs efforts to undermine the coronavirus vaccines really kicked into gear following President Joe Bidenâs inauguration. According to a Media Matters analysis, in the 254 days since Biden took office (from January 20 through September 30), Fox undermined the vaccination efforts at least once on 238 of the days (94%). The networkâs efforts to undermine inoculations increased as we got further into Bidenâs presidency; from January 20 through March 31, Fox undermined the vaccine effort at least once on 80% of the days (57 out of 71), but from April 1 through September 30, the network undermined the vaccine efforts at least once on 99% of the days (181 out of 183).
The two days from April through September when there wasnât an effort to undermine vaccinations came amid overwhelming coverage of the final days of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in late August and early September, when discussions of the vaccination efforts were put on the back burner. From March 27 to August 28, Fox undermined the vaccination each day for 155 straight days. [Monroe T, Savillo B. Fox has undermined vaccines nearly every day in the last six months. Media Matters for America, Oct 5, 2021]
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