Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Tucker Carlson

After ACIP: Where Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will likely go from here in his quest to eliminate vaccines

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was on The Tucker Carlson Show last week. It got me to thinking: What's next in RFK Jr.'s crusade against vaccines after he turned ACIP into an antivax committee?

/ July 7, 2025
Two clear bottles with red caps, filled with raw cow milk, sit side by side on a countertop against a white tile backsplash. Each bottle is labeled “RAW COW MILK FOR CATS & DOGS.”.

Dr. Vinay Prasad: Bodily Autonomy Applies to Raw Milk, Not Vaccines

This is what it looks like when disinformation doctors pretend to value data and science to further their true objective, MAHA politics.

/ July 4, 2025
A person wearing a blue long-sleeve shirt checks a white smartwatch on their wrist, displaying a colorful screen with time and fitness activity data.

Wearables and Wellness Populism: How Smart Watches Got MAHA’d

Fifteen years ago, then-contributor Peter Lipson wrote a short post on this blog that I’ve reflected on many times since. Titled Your Disease, Your Fault, Peter described a central theme that runs through nearly every variant of alternative medicine: That illness is preventable, and therefore, your fault. According to this worldview, disease isn’t a product of biology, inequity, or chance. It is...

/ July 3, 2025
A hand draws a rising graph with a question mark in a notebook labeled "RESEARCH" on a cluttered desk with charts, a calculator, crumpled papers, coffee, a magnifying glass, and a "REFERENCE" card.

Standards in Behavioral Science

How can we decrease the amount of shoddy science and improve the rigor of research in the behavioral sciences?

/ July 2, 2025
A laboratory fume hood heavily damaged by fire, with charred equipment, melted glassware, and black soot covering the surfaces; burn marks and debris are visible throughout the scene.

Big Trouble in Little Pharma

The Excruciating Inspection of David Geier’s DAP Pharmaceuticals

/ July 1, 2025
Clown Car

RFK Jr.’s reconstituted vaccine committee meets for the first time, and I can’t help but think of clowns…antivax clowns

Last week, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s reconstituted Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) met for the first time. The proceedings reminded me, more than anything else, of an antivax clown car.

/ June 30, 2025
Silhouette of a crowd of people raising fists and pitchforks, appearing to protest or revolt, with some wearing hats; the background is plain white.

Dr. Jay Bhattacharya Tried to Summon a Social Media Mob to Bully and Silence a Dissident Scientist, but the Mob Had Other Ideas

The mob doesn't trust the medical establishment, and today Dr. Bhattacharya is the medical establishment.

/ June 28, 2025
White plastic letters on a black felt letter board spell out "SAFE SPACE" in two lines, with a simple and clean design.

As Trust in our Medical Establishment Justifiably Collapses, They Are Making Cheerful Propaganda Podcasts From Their Safe Spaces

Some of us believe in civil debate and discussion, even though Drs. Vinay Prasad, Marty Makary, and Jay Bhattacharya do not.

/ June 27, 2025
A comic shows text: "When you see a claim that a drug or vitamin 'kills cancer cells in a petri dish,' keep in mind: So does a handgun." An illustrated figure points a gun at a lab dish on a desk.

Oregano Snake Oil

Oregano oil is being marketed with a variety of health claims, including as a treatment for various infections, inflammatory disorders, and skin conditions. This TikTok video by an “Ayervedic specialist” is typical of the claims made for this product. The claims suffer all the usual problems of the supplement industry, which we can go through them in some detail. But here is...

/ June 25, 2025
Several gold bars are stacked, but one bar is cut open to reveal a gray, rough interior, indicating that it is not solid gold.