Autism

Does an anti-vaccine advocate prove his claims of vaccine dangers with "undercover" video of private World Health Organization meetings and does he provide credible citations of scientific research to prove his claims? No, that's not true: The video caption promises "an undercover footage - the media don't want you to see" but delivers less than a quarter-minute -- without audio.…

Was Joe Biden awarded the medal of honor and four Nobel Peace Prizes and did he cure AIDS, cancer and autism? No, that's not true: The 46th U.S. president has achieved none of those accomplishments. The false claims appeared in a meme that suggested they would not be fact checked. That claim is also false, since Lead Stories has debunked…

Do variants of the MTHFR gene cause disease and increase the likelihood of vaccine reactions? No, that's not true: In rare circumstances, a MTHFR (methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase) gene variant causes neural tube defects in newborn babies. Other times, it can cause elevelated levels of homocysteine, which can lead to blood clots. Otherwise, there are no scientific studies linking MTHFR gene variants,…

Will taking a COVID-19 vaccine kill you or lead to "debilitating" illness? No, that's not true: There is an abundance of evidence to the contrary. For one, between the two farthest along and most robust vaccine trials out of Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech, there have already been tens of thousands of people administered the vaccine and not one person has died…

Was it proven over 100 years ago that vaccines are "hurting mankind"? No, that's not true: This research, which appears in Alfred Wallace's 135-year-old book, "Forty-Five Years of Registration Statistics, Proving Vaccination to be Both Useless and Dangerous," is full of falsehoods, including the title. And more than a century of research data has accumulated since it was written. The…

Is it true that Pfizer's vaccine candidate to battle COVID-19 is made and stored in such a way that scores of people could be severely sickened or even killed by its use? No, that is a conspiracy theory not supported by scientific studies. According to vaccine experts and literature, the use of PEG -- polyethylene glycol --- in Pfizer's potential…

Are vaccines definitively linked to autism? No, that's not true: While some people believe this to be the case -- and are spreading their belief online in advance of release of vaccines to battle COVID-19 -- it remains just that, belief. Peer-reviewed and replicated medical research shows no causation between vaccines and autism. There is also no evidence that a…

Did Scientific American warn that 5G technology is not safe? No, that's not true: That's the opinion of one guest columnist of many. The magazine has not taken a stand on the safety of 5G. The claim appeared in an article published by Natural News on October 20, 2020, titled "Still think 5G is harmless? Scientific American issues warnings about…

Are specific marks on cars a sign of sex trafficking? No, that's not true: Both local law enforcement and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children refuted this claim. There is no concrete evidence to substantiate this claim. The claim appeared in a Facebook post (archived here) where it was published by Patricia Carson Allen on October 13, 2020.…

Are "med beds" and "Tesla chambers" rapid-healing devices created by extra-terrestrials that have the ability to wipe out any medical ailment? No, that's not true: There is absolutely zero evidence that devices with these capabilities exist, and the images claimed to be the "med beds" and "Tesla chambers" are images produced by humans on Earth and were taken out of…