Claim reviews
Scientific evidence shows that mask-wearing is effective at limiting community transmission; claims that face masks increase mortality are based on flawed correlation studies
CLAIM
“Countries with high levels of mask compliance did not perform better than those with low mask usage”; “Mask Mandates [are] Associated With Increased Covid Death Rate”
SOURCE: Zacharias Foegen, Townhall Media, The National Pulse
Published: 11 Jun 2022
VERDICT
No scientific evidence supports claims that plant-based food supplements reduce blood sugar to normal levels and cure type 2 diabetes
CLAIM
Food supplements get “perfect sugar levels restored” and “help with type 2 [diabetes]”
SOURCE: Facebook Users, Facebook
Published: 10 Jun 2022
VERDICT
Large-scale studies have found that COVID-19 vaccination doesn’t increase the risk of negative pregnancy outcomes, contrary to claim by Naomi Wolf
CLAIM
Babies of vaccinated mothers are dying in disproportionate numbers and the COVID-19 vaccines are responsible
SOURCE: Naomi Wolf, War Room Battleground, Substack
Published: 07 Jun 2022
VERDICT
Published research from the Wuhan Institute of Virology didn’t describe artificially created monkeypox strains; the research is unrelated to the 2022 monkeypox outbreak
CLAIM
Researchers from the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) “assembled monkeypox strains”
SOURCE: Natalie Winters, The National Pulse
Published: 03 Jun 2022
VERDICT
Sperm washing to help HIV-discordant couples conceive biological children safely was reported in the 90s; not “huge medical breakthrough” in 2022
CLAIM
A South African scientist made a “huge medical breakthrough” by successfully removing HIV from a sperm cell in a lab
SOURCE: Facebook users, Facebook
Published: 31 May 2022
VERDICT
No scientific data support the existence of orgone and its ability to cure cancer
CLAIM
“Wilhelm Reich invented a way to cure cancer”
SOURCE: Facebook Users, Facebook
Published: 27 May 2022
VERDICT
Monkeypox outbreak triggers conspiracy theories on social media claiming that it was planned or incorrectly linking it to COVID-19 vaccines
CLAIM
Monkeypox is caused by COVID-19 vaccines; a 2021 tabletop exercise portraying a monkeypox pandemic is evidence that global leaders planned the outbreak; the monkeypox vaccine was “ready” before the outbreak
SOURCE: Social media users, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube
Published: 26 May 2022
VERDICT
No reliable scientific evidence supports the use of dietary supplements marketed as weight loss and blood pressure aids in viral Facebook posts
CLAIM
Exipure weight loss supplement is scientifically proven to be effective; BPS-5 supplement effectively reduces blood pressure
SOURCE: Anonymous, Facebook
Published: 26 May 2022
VERDICT
Following COVID-19 vaccination, the spike protein is produced in small quantities in the body, which have not been shown to be harmful
CLAIM
“[Spike] is harmful to the human body in at least eight different ways [and] can persist in the human body for weeks, or even months, after a person gets vaccinated”
SOURCE: Roma Balmakov, The Epoch Times
Published: 25 May 2022
VERDICT
Scientific evidence doesn’t support the claim that induced abortion increases the risk of breast cancer and mental illness
CLAIM
Abortion increases the risk of breast cancer, mental illness, and preterm labor
SOURCE: Christina Francis, George Delgado, Newsmax
Published: 23 May 2022
VERDICT