Corrections

When applied to the "liver area," does castor oil "break up" gallstones and kidney stones, as a video on Facebook claimed? No, that's not true: No substantive evidence exists that topically applied castor oil can treat gallstones or kidney stones. Castor oil is "generally recognized as safe and effective as an over-the-counter laxative product," the Food and Drug Administration confirmed…

Is a "potato poultice" a proven effective treatment for tissue inflammation? No, that's not true: Though potatoes contain certain antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, Lead Stories found no evidence that externally applied potato poultices are scientifically proven to treat inflammation. A nutrition expert confirmed to Lead Stories that most accounts describing potato poultices are outdated and anecdotal. The claim originated in…

Does the cover of the October 2023 issue of the German satirical magazine Titanic feature a cartoon of people wearing masks depicting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, with a title that translates to "This time there won't be enough sweets for everyone"? No, that's not true: Titanic's webmaster confirmed to Lead Stories that this supposed cover is fabricated. The official cover…

Does margarine cause macular degeneration? No, that's not true: While there is some evidence to suggest the consumption of certain foods and fats may play a role in and are associated with the development of macular degeneration and other forms of vision loss, Lead Stories found no peer-reviewed scientific evidence to support the declaration that eating margarine specifically will "cause…

Do castor oil compresses applied to the abdomen "heal" the colon to treat for diarrhea and constipation? No, that's not true: There is no scientific evidence that suggests castor oil has therapeutic benefits beyond its approved laxative properties when taken orally. Claims that castor oil compresses can heal diarrhea and constipation were made by a former naturopathic practitioner barred from…

Do bras made of unnatural fibers or those that contain underwire cause breast cancer? No, that's not true: Experts agree that there is no substantive or reliable scientific evidence that wearing underwire bras or those made of unnatural fibers is linked to an increased risk of breast cancer. The claim originated in a 1-hour video shared to YouTube on October…

Are castor oil compresses a proven effective treatment for tumors and breast cancer? No, that's not true: There is no scientific evidence that suggests castor oil has therapeutic benefits beyond its approved laxative properties. Claims that castor oil compresses cured breast cancer and uterine fibroids, as well as treated tumors, are purely anecdotal stories from a former naturopath barred from…

Are vaccines proven ineffective by a U.K. report published in February 2023, which found that 92 percent of "deaths involving COVID-19" occurred in fully vaccinated individuals? No, that's not true: Implying causality from a limited set of data leaves out consequential variables such as the ages of the dead, other underlying diseases, and whether booster recommendations had been followed. While…

Does a picture circulating on social media prove that Pfizer has a patent "for tracking vaccinated humans worldwide via microwave and graphene"? No, that's not true: The pictured document is not a Pfizer patent and it does not mention graphene or microwaves. Pfizer's office of media relations confirmed to Lead Stories that Pfizer has nothing to do with the patent,…

Did nearly a quarter of a million voting attempts fail in the November 8, 2022, election in Arizona and did that impact the vote count? No, that's not true: The communications director for the Maricopa County Elections Department called the allegation "textbook disinformation." While many ballots were scanned and rescanned multiple times, the votes were ultimately counted. Arizona Secretary of…

Has the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recorded more than 16,000 people who have died within a few days of taking the COVID-19 vaccine where the deaths were proven to have been caused by the vaccine? No, that's not true: Only nine deaths of some 18,500 preliminary reports of death have been causally associated with vaccination for coronavirus.…

Is the Maryland General Assembly "about to vote" on a controversial pregnancy "freedom" bill? Not exactly: Maryland legislators proposed the Pregnant Person's Freedom Act of 2022, which is in committee, but at the time of writing the bill is not undergoing a final vote, as implied by a social media post. The claim was implied in a Facebook post (archived…

Is this meme correct in saying COVID-19 is less deadly than what was known as Spanish flu a century ago, or current variants of seasonal flu? No, that is misleading: COVID-19 is killing more people annually than the seasonal flu did in the years prior to COVID and the CDC has declared COVID more deadly. A meme from mid-2020 going…

Did the head of a German hospital who committed suicide describe the COVID-19 vaccine as genocide and a crime against humanity? No, that's not true: Online publications reported unsubstantiated claims of a suicide note from the physician that said those things, but the claims were dismissed by German authorities, who investigated the death, and by municipal officials. The claims appeared…

Has a Swedish university proved that the COVID-19 vaccine creates spike proteins that are "hijacking" the human body's DNA repair and adaptive immune mechanisms? No, that's not true: The claim was based on a paper withdrawn by the authors after the university in question found flaws in the methodology and conclusions. The claim was made in a November 4, 2021,…

Did Dr. Dan Stock present well-reasoned arguments to the Mt. Vernon, Indiana, school board against masking and vaccination as means to mitigate the spread and harm of COVID-19, and should his arguments apply universally as public health measures? No, that's not true: The arguments made by this doctor are a mixture of true, false and irrelevant and contradict the evolving…

Did six people in Pennsylvania die and then register and vote in the 2020 election? No evidence has been provided to back up that claim: Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who was quoted in the article as making the claim, did not respond to Lead Stories' request for evidence. The communications director with the Pennsylvania Department of State told Lead Stories…

Was corrupted voting system software used in Michigan to steal 6,000 votes from President Donald Trump and was that software also used in seven U.S. swing states? No, there is no evidence for the first claim, the second claim is false, while the third is true: According to the Michigan Department of State, there was no equipment or software malfunction.…

Are "murder hornets" the same insects as cicada killers and native to the United States? No, that's not true: murder hornets are Asian giant hornets and are new to North America. These newcomers apparently have not traveled beyond Washington state and Canada. A post (archived here) published on Facebook on Tuesday, May 5, 2020, correctly pointed out that there is…

Is it true that "thousands of doctors" say hydroxychloroquine "cures" COVID-19 patients," but the cure won't be valid until a major study is done? And is it true that once a vaccination against the novel coronavirus is manufactured, it will be quickly dispersed to health professionals for "immediate human injection" while studies about its safety and risks will come later.…