Health

Does an authentic photo show Secret Service agents without earpieces during their response to the shooting at a Donald Trump rally on July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania? No, that's not true: The earpieces can be seen in the original picture captured by Getty Images staff photographer Anna Moneymaker. The image in an X post that claims Secret Service agents…

Will bioengineered rennet, an enzyme necessary for cheese production and made primarily by Pfizer, make you sick, as a video on Facebook implies? No, that's not true: Rennet is not considered genetically modified and is safe for human health, several experts told Lead Stories. Rennet is used to generate the final cheese product, but is not an ingredient in cheese,…

Is the mpox vaccine loaded with HIV, as a video shared by The People's Voice claims? No, that's not true: The People's Voice is a website with a long history of publishing made-up news, and it provided no sources -- aside from a supposed whistleblower -- to back up the claims made in the video. The ingredient list and package…

Did the state of Minnesota enact a policy that put tampons in "10 year old boys bathrooms" while Tim Walz was governor? No, that's not true: The Minnesota statute does not mention boys-only bathrooms, and school districts said free menstrual products go to female-only and designated gender-neutral bathrooms. The state Department of Education said they haven't told any schools to…

Is the monkeypox virus known to spread through airborne transmission, as suggested by a post on Instagram Threads? No, that's not true: Global health agencies agree that the primary way the virus is spread is through close or direct contact between an uninfected and infected person's body fluids, lesions or saliva, plus contaminated clothing or bedding. The U.S. Department of…

Did "Shark Tank" investor Lori Greiner endorse a neuropathy or neuralgia medication? No, that's not true: An AI-detection tool found the video saying this has been altered to include fake audio that sounds like Greiner. The original video of Greiner never even mentioned neuropathy, it was an interview about starting a business. The claim appeared in a video on Facebook…

Does a 2017 paper on resveratrol suggest it could be used to stop or treat monkeypox as part of the public health emergency declared in August 2024? No, that's not true: An author of the paper told Lead Stories that resveratrol was never tested on humans or animals in their research, and it's "unclear if it suppresses poxvirus replication." An…

Did the World Health Organization order governments to "Prepare for 'Mega Lockdowns' Due to 'Deadly Monkeypox' Strain"? No, that's not true: WHO responded to a Lead Stories inquiry about the report of orders for lockdown preparation with "It is false." Preparations for or even the suggestion of major lockdowns because of the monkeypox virus would be major news worldwide, yet…

Did Japan declare a state of emergency in August 2024 after "nanobots" were found in 96 million citizens? No, that's not true: A state of emergency in Japan would be major news worldwide and yet there have been no stories about it. The "news" came from a website with a reputation for making things up. The journal article the website…

Did psychologist Jordan Peterson endorse a book called "The Herbal Tablets"? No, that's not true: An online analysis tool found with 97 percent confidence that the audio was generated by AI. The audio track was dubbed over a video clip from Peterson's recent appearance on the "Joe Rogan Experience" podcast. A search of the original podcast transcript does not contain…