Category: Science and Medicine

Phage Therapy and Antibiotic Resistance

We are potentially seeing the rebirth of phage therapy for bacterial infections, but we can't skip the science.

/ February 24, 2021
Prions and Creutzfeldt‐Jakob disease

Can mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines cause prion disease or Alzheimer’s?

Antivax immunologist J. Bart Classen published a paper claiming that mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines can cause prion disease leading to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's dementia. What are prions, and can these vaccines cause prion disease? (Spoiler alert: The answer to the second question is almost certainly no. It's speculation based on highly implausible biology.)

/ February 22, 2021

Science-Based Satire: Portland Compounding Pharmacy Introduces Line of Bespoke Artisinal Parenteral Nutrition

Are compounding pharmacies working with naturopathic integrative functional medicine doctors to make bespoke artisanal IV nutrition that looks like soup in a mason jar? No. Stop it. You know this isn't true. It's satire.

/ February 19, 2021
Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine

Lipid nanoparticles in COVID-19 vaccines: The new mercury to antivaxxers

When it comes to antivaccine misinformation and the COVID-19 pandemic, everything old is new again, at least if you haven't been paying attention. This time around, it's the resurrection of an old favorite antivaccine trope, the "toxins" gambit. Truly, lipid nanoparticles are the new mercury.

/ February 15, 2021
Central Dogma of Molecular Biology

The latest antivax false claim: mRNA vaccines against COVID-19 are not vaccines but “medical devices” or “gene therapy”

There's a new antivaccine talking point in town, and it's just as much disinformation as other antivaccine talking points. It's the claim that mRNA COVID-19 vaccines are not really vaccines but "medical devices," "gene therapy," or "experimental biologics" and that they were falsely classified as vaccines in order to bypass safety testing. Here, we discuss why this claim is utter nonsense based...

/ February 8, 2021

Shameless self-promotion: Dr. Gorski on the Thinking Critically podcast

Dr. Gorski appeared on the Thinking Critically podcast to discuss the antivaccine movement, COVID-19, medical conspiracy theories, and his journey to skepticism.

/ February 7, 2021

Yes, You Can Swaddle Your Baby…But a Sleep Sack is Probably the Safest Option

Taking care of a baby can be scary, and there is a lot of conflicting advice out there. This is especially true when it comes to recommendations on the safety of swaddling. While not completely risk free, swaddling can be done safely and the benefits likely outweigh the risk. But you can always just use a sleep sack.

/ February 5, 2021
Namaste - Yoga Practitioner

Conspirituality: Where New Age wellness meets right wing conspiracy thinking

Conspiracy theorists and QAnon may sound miles apart from wellness, yoga and GOOP, but they're converging into "conspirituality", the integration of spirituality and conspiracy theories.

/ February 4, 2021
Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine

The efforts of antivaxxers to portray COVID-19 vaccines as harmful or even deadly continue apace (VAERS edition)

With the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines continuing apace, so are the efforts of antivaxxers to portray the vaccines as dangerous. This time around, they've resurrected the old antivaccine trick of deceptively misusing the VAERS database to imply causation from VAERS reports. That's not how VAERS works, however.

/ February 1, 2021

Ad-Conned: A Critical Look At CASPer

Medical schools are facing a flood of applicants, and have started using for-profit tests alleged to assess people skills as a way to distinguish candidates. The evidence is weak, and lacks transparency.

/ January 29, 2021