Did Bill Gates launch "artificial breast milk" during the U.S. baby formula shortage in 2022? No, that's not true: Although Gates' investment fund Breakthrough Energy Ventures is an investor in BIOMILQ, a startup that is developing lab-grown breast milk, the product has not been launched and its availability is unrelated to the nationwide shortage. The claim appeared in a Facebook…

Do fibers in the eye indicate immune system strength? No, that's not true: The chief of ophthalmology at Yale Health told us, "It is not possible to determine overall immune health or strength by looking at the iris." A Mayo Clinic College of Medicine faculty member told Lead Stories that they have no knowledge of any kind of fibers in…

Did The Washington Post publish an article by technology columnist Taylor Lorenz titled, "This dog is the new face of online homophobia"? No, that's not true: This is not a screenshot of a real article but a spoof made to look like an "Internet Culture" feature in the Post. There is some confusion by design about who is the intended…

When President Joe Biden took office, was there no COVID-19 vaccine available? No, that's not true: The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine and the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine both received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) emergency use authorizations (EUA) in December 2021. The vaccines were available but not widely available to the public while former President Donald Trump was still in office. The…

Was the Titanic sunk intentionally in order to kill specific people who opposed a central banking system, thus clearing the way to establish the Federal Reserve? No, that's not true: This antisemitic conspiracy theory was already floating around the internet before it was promoted to followers of QAnon. There is no evidence to support this. In November 2017, a series…

Did "US General Eric Olson" surrender with other troops in at the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, Ukraine? No, that's not true: The image of a line of soldiers used in a post is from April 14, 2022, which was weeks before the Ukrainian military announced in May 2022 that Ukrainian forced had completed their "combat mission" in Mariupol, and…

Will Similac and Enfamil, two baby formula companies, send parents free formula through "the state" due to the ongoing formula shortage? No, that's not true: A spokesperson for Abbott, the parent company of Similac, told us that this claim was not true. Although a social media post claimed that the baby formula company Enfamil would also send parents free formula,…

Did the U.S. military find pesticides in Moderna COVID-19 vaccine vials? No, that's not true: Not only are there no pesticides on the ingredients list for Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine, but the Department of Defense press office issued a statement saying, "There is no truth to this." The claims appeared in an article (archived here) published by Real Raw News (RRN)…

Can parents in the United States purchase baby formula from Amazon Canada to expedite the delivery during a shortage of formula in the U.S.? No, that's not true: Amazon consumers based in the U.S. are not able to purchase baby formula products from other versions of the Amazon website, like Amazon.ca, if the formula is sold or shipped by Amazon.…

Due to recent baby formula shortages, is the U.S. military health care program Tricare shipping free baby formula to Tricare beneficiaries, based on how much the baby consumes each month? No, the information in the viral post is misleading: Only a small number of babies who have a medical need because of a metabolic disorder -- and a doctor's order…