Americans Arent Sure Whats True In This Health Misinformation Age

About three in ten Americans still believe ivermectin is an effective treatment for COVID-19. In addition, few people seriously trust the media or official institutions to provide accurate information on health topics ranging from COVID-19 treatments and vaccines to reproductive health issues, according to a new KFF study.

Confusion about who is right and who is telling the truth is important to public health, political science experts say. "Misinformation leads to loss of life and unresolved health issues," Bob Blandon, professor emeritus of public health at Harvard University, said in an interview. Blendon did not participate in the investigation.

According to today's KFF poll, only a small percentage of the population shares these misinformed beliefs. Nearly a third of people surveyed in 2007 said the deworming drug ivermectin was definitely or probably effective in treating COVID-19. cure (Not true: many randomized controlled studies have shown the opposite.) Only 22% think that ivermectin is definitely ineffective.

A fifth believe it is definitely or probably true that the Covid-19 vaccine has killed more people than the virus itself. (Many studies looking at different data sets have found lower death rates in those who received the vaccine than in those who did not.)

But almost half, or 47%, believe this statement is completely false.

Still, the prevalence of vaccine misinformation is "alarming," according to Brendan Nyhan, a professor of public administration at Dartmouth College who has studied misinformation for years. Although not necessarily the result of misinformation, 30% of respondents believe that parents should not be forced to vaccinate their children against measles, mumps and rubella.

More than a third of respondents also believe that the use of contraceptives, such as the intrauterine device, makes it more difficult for most women to become pregnant after the pregnancy ends.

According to Lunna Lopez, KFF's senior survey analyst and one of the survey's authors, the results show a wide but limited spread of misrepresentation.

"Many have heard of these claims of health misinformation. Just because they stumble upon it doesn't mean they'll try," he said. However, the barrage of misinformation can leave people unsure of what to believe. »

Limited reliance on outright misinformation may do little to comfort public health advocates. The survey also revealed, at best, a reluctant trust in all forms of media and in the federal government. The limited trust revealed by the poll is colored by broad partisan divides, Nyhan said.

The respondents did not have "great" faith in the information conveyed by the media. Only a quarter of respondents had this high level of trust in local news channels. And it's the highest score among the institutions tested, spanning the ideological and stylistic spectrum from MSNBC to The New York Times to Fox News and Newsmax. Many more people had "some" faith in each of these institutions.

However, Blendon's moderate support is problematic. This suggests that we "lack" reliable sources of health information.

According to him, journalists and editors should be aware that "there is something in the way of presenting information that viewers do not consider reliable". 70% of respondents said that the media is not doing enough to limit the spread of health misinformation.

The public conversation tends to focus on the often extreme and outrageous claims that appear on social media, as well as corporate and government efforts to regulate this environment, Blandon noted. 69% of respondents believe that social networks do not do enough to limit the spread of false or inaccurate information.

But the survey shows that even though the public connects to social networks quite often, they have very little faith in the health information they find there. No social network has a double-digit percentage of respondents who say they are "very" safe.

However, according to Lopez, a significant portion of the public, about a quarter, turn to these platforms for information and medical advice. "It was especially special for us," she said. The forums are especially helpful for Hispanics and youth.

The picture is equally bleak for official institutions. About a quarter of respondents have "a lot" of confidence in the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As for the Food and Drug Administration, that figure has dropped to one-fifth. The Biden administration, Donald Trump and state and local health officials have withdrawn.

These results, combined with a lack of confidence, were particularly disappointing for Nyhan. "They will be important sources of information during future pandemics, despite their mistakes and misjudgments during the pandemic," he said of public health institutions.

The most trusted source of medical information. Your doctor. 48% of respondents were very confident in their recommendations.

The survey, KFF's pilot health misinformation monitoring survey, was conducted online and by telephone from May 23 to June 12 in English and Spanish among a nationally representative sample of US adults.

This article was originally published by PolitiFact, part of the Poynter Institute.

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