TMTM
Health Care Concerns

alvarez/istockphoto

Cheapism is editorially independent. We may earn a commission if you buy through links on our site.

The life expectancy in the U.S. is dropping — and is a shocking 3 to 5 years shorter than in other high-income countries. While COVID-19 didn't help, the gap is getting worse post-pandemic, and the head of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Dr. Robert Califf, puts the blame on another hard-to-kill virus: the internet.

@thexhemist As someone who actually knows a thing or two about cancer the video is not only attocious but dangerous. I tried reporting his video but it didnt go through so here i am making a video to hopefully bring awareness. I didnt even want to play the whole video because it is just such bad and dangerous misinformation. #gymtok #healthylifestyle #holistic #mythdebunked #debunked #healthmyths #misinformationkills #misinformation ♬ original sound - ayko

In an interview with CNBC, Califf said he's dedicated to rooting out misinformation using special agencies of the FDA and Federal Trade Commission (FTC). “You think about the impact of a single person reaching a billion people on the internet all over the world, we just weren’t prepared for that,” Califf told CNBC. “We don’t have societal rules that are adjudicating it quite right, and I think it’s impacting our health in very detrimental ways.”


Given that a quick glimpse at social media reveals influencers urging cancer patients to quit traditional treatments, or recommending that those with belly bloat take harsh parasite killers they likely don't need, Califf and others might have an uphill battle ahead. Needless to say, it's probably a good idea to pass ideas found on the internet past your doctor.


Want more news in your inbox? Sign up for our free newsletters! And be sure to like us on Facebook, too.




Cheapism in the News
msn
today
nytimes
cnbc
newyorker
cbs