NHS staff battling wave of food supplement disinformation
Key takeaways
- Patients’ belief in unproven dietary regimes, vitamins and minerals may be increasing their risk of getting cancer.
- Two out of five frontline health workers say they encounter patients who raise inaccurate or misleading information about supplements at least once a week.
- The WCRF says it fears that patients’ belief in unproven dietary regimes, vitamins and minerals is putting their health in danger and increasing their risk of getting cancer.
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Patients’ belief in unproven dietary regimes, vitamins and minerals may be increasing their risk of getting cancer. Photograph: Oleg Breslavtsev/Getty Images View image in fullscreen Patients’ belief in unproven dietary regimes, vitamins and minerals may be increasing their risk of getting cancer. Photograph: Oleg Breslavtsev/Getty Images NHSNHS staff battling wave of food supplement disinformation Exclusive: Cancer charity says dispelling falsehoods gleaned from social media is now routine task for clinicians
Prefer the Guardian on GoogleSocial media misinformation about the use of dietary supplements such as turmeric, St John’s wort and magnesium is now so common that dispelling online claims has become a routine part of NHS clinicians work.
Two out of five frontline health workers say they encounter patients who raise inaccurate or misleading information about supplements at least once a week.