The most dangerous health myths debunked in 2020, from herd immunity to COVID-19 'hygiene theater'
FOLLOW US: Insider is on Facebook.
Myth: Herd immunity is a good strategy against the coronavirus.
Ever since restrictions were implemented to slow the rise in coronavirus cases, some people have suggested that the best way to handle the pandemic is by letting infections happen.
The theory is that if enough people are naturally exposed to the virus, the population could build up enough immunity to resist continued spread among the "herd" of people. Typically, this exposure happens via a vaccine, which helps people develop resistance to a virus without getting sick.
But without a vaccine, the risk of unnecessary deaths and long-term consequences is too great for herd immunity to work, according to public-health experts.
That's because COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, has serious long-term side effects we're only just beginning to understand. Symptoms like brain fog, ongoing fatigue, rashes, and loss of smell can affect survivors, and we don't know for how long.
The number of people with the virus requiring intensive care or hospitalization is also enough to overwhelm the healthcare system, putting at risk the entire community, including doctors and other medical staffers on the front lines.
That's led experts to continue to advocate social distancing and wearing a mask — precautions that can save lives — until a vaccine is available.
Myth: "Natural" remedies like bleach or colloidal silver can prevent or cure disease.
Certain fringes of the internet have long touted a "cure" called miracle mineral solution, or MMS, which some people believe can treat everything from malaria and the flu to cancer and autism.
The substance, chemically known as chlorine dioxide, is, in fact, an industrial bleach. Consuming it can lead to serious health issues, including liver failure, severely low blood pressure, and, in high doses, coma or death.
MMS advocates have used the pandemic to promote the product since the virus gained international attention early this year.
The disinformation campaign promoting chlorine dioxide has gained momentum on social media, prompting companies like Facebook to shut down some of the larger communities selling the substance.
Still, some government officials — such as the new health minister in Bolivia — have advocated its use despite scientists' warnings.
In the US, the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission have cracked down on fraudulent claims that products can cure COVID-19. These include MMS and colloidal silver, another dubious supplement made of tiny particles of metal suspended in liquid; it can cause kidney damage and argyria, a permanent blue-gray discoloration of the skin.
Myth: Commenting about people's weight or diet is helpful.
It's a myth that someone's health can be determined solely by their weight. But two vitriolic online debates this year showcased why commenting on someone's weight or diet without context can be dangerous too.
In the spring, the British pop star Adele received unsolicited comments after posting a picture of herself looking slimmer. Critics pointed out that weight loss isn't inherently positive and that focusing on Adele's apparent transformation reinforced a cultural message that larger bodies are less worthy.
In August, the "Black Panther" star Chadwick Boseman died of colon cancer, which he had kept secret from the public. For years, the actor had lost weight as a consequence of his illness — fans lamented his loss of muscle, and people made mean-spirited jokes.
These cases illustrate how body-shaming comments can miss the mark. Weight changes can happen for a variety of reasons, and even well-intentioned comments can backfire. And research has linked weight stigma with poorer mental and physical health.
That's a good reason to keep weight-related comments to yourself, particularly as "quarantine 15" jokes and memes continue to be popular and eating disorders are on the rise.
Myth: Health is colorblind.
While 2020 was a year of protests and marches for racial equity and against police brutality, racism took center stage in another way.
The coronavirus pandemic has highlighted disparities in the healthcare system that have made Black and brown communities more vulnerable to COVID-19, according to experts.
In June, the Brookings Institution said that, based on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Black Americans between the ages of 35 to 44 were 10 times as likely to die of COVID-19 as their white peers, and Latinx people in the same age group were eight times as likely to die.
That's in part due to higher rates of chronic illnesses such as diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and asthma, experts have said. Those disparities are linked to systematic racism; a lack of access to healthcare, more exposure to dangerous environments, and less access to nutritious food all play a role in the risk of chronic disease.
"COVID-19 has unmasked the structural racism in this country," Dr. Camara Jones, an epidemiologist and physician with affiliations at Morehouse, Emory, and Harvard universities, previously told Business Insider.
Myth: Sanitizing everything is the best way to prevent people from getting sick.
From floor-to-ceiling wipe-downs to heavy-duty disinfectants to huge trucks designed to spray bleach, people have spent enormous resourcing trying to prevent the spread of COVID-19 this year.
But according to experts, those efforts are misguided.
"Hygiene theater," a term coined in July by The Atlantic, describes coronavirus precautions that are, at best, only mildly protective at the cost of large amounts of time, energy, and resources.
Experts say that focusing on routinely sanitizing high-touch surfaces such as door handles and armrests is much more efficient than infrequently deep-cleaning.
Handwashing is also crucial. While the coronavirus primarily spreads from person to person through the air, keeping your hands clean reduces the chance that you'll transfer any wayward particles to your face.
Furthermore, the best ways to prevent infection in public spaces are chemical-free — socially distancing and wearing masks are key strategies, according to health experts.
Ventilation is also important, since it can help prevent the transmission of airborne viral particles indoors.
Myth: You can boost your immune system to fight off the virus.
A growing body of evidence suggests that vitamin supplements — a $36 billion industry in the US — are overhyped at best and a huge waste of money at worst.
Gummy vitamins in particular are an expensive, sugary stand-in for nutrients when people should really just be eating more vegetables and whole foods, according to experts.
"There's no evidence that the average healthy adult needs to take supplements," Dr. Robert Shmerling, a senior faculty editor at Harvard Health Publishing, previously told Business Insider.
In addition to being unhelpful for general health, supplements also aren't effective at preventing or treating COVID-19, despite claims of "immune-boosting" benefits.
The one exception is vitamin D. Evidence increasingly suggests that a lack of that nutrient could play a crucial role in our ability to defend against viruses and other malicious microbes.
Even if you do need more of a specific vitamin, supplements are largely unregulated, so it can be difficult to know what exactly you're getting and how much.
Myth: Hydroxychloroquine can treat or cure COVID-19.
Hydroxychloroquine, a medication for malaria and autoimmune diseases, was thought to work against the novel coronavirus since it has some antiviral properties in a lab setting.
But there's a growing body of evidence that it just doesn't work — despite proponents like President Donald Trump and the television personality Dr. Oz advocating its widespread use.
Studies found that the drug provided no benefit to patients hospitalized with COVID-19 and was no better than a placebo when administered to patients with early or mild cases.
Research has also indicated that it doesn't help to prevent infections.
In June, the FDA revoked an emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine treatment for coronavirus patients. The agency cited serious side effects such as heart problems associated with its use.
The spotlight on hydroxychloroquine has had other consequences, such as drawing attention and resources away from other therapies.
The drug's popularity as an experimental coronavirus treatment was also linked to shortages for people who needed the medication for conditions like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.
Myth: Face masks are useless or harmful.
According to experts, wearing a mask is one of the most important measures people can take to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
Still, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, some people continue to insist that masks are ineffective or harmful.
Part of the resistance may be due to inconsistent messages from health authorities early in the pandemic. The initial advice not to wear them was to make sure frontline workers would have access to the limited supply, and it has since been overturned.
But misinformation about masks is rampant.
The debunked film "Plandemic," for instance, claimed that wearing a mask could worsen an infection. Experts say this just isn't true.
It's also not true that masks pose any risk to your ability to breathe properly. Study after study has found that they don't impair oxygen levels — though people might perceive that it takes more effort to breathe.
Beyond the science, rhetoric about personal freedom has been a tenet of anti-maskers, who have asserted that eschewing a mask despite the dangerous public-health consequences is a right.
Myth: Kids aren't affected by the novel coronavirus.
While it's true that young people appear to be prone to milder cases of COVID-19, they are far from immune.
Researchers have found that, in rare instances, children can experience a severe and life-threatening inflammatory response that appears linked to COVID-19.
And while children have made up a tiny percentage of COVID-19 deaths, those who do die have tended to be Black or Hispanic, underscoring what we know about the higher vulnerability of these communities to the virus.
We're just beginning to understand why children respond the way they do to coronavirus infections. Recent research has suggested that children have a weaker antibody response and thus a less severe reaction to COVID-19 than adults.
However, there's still a lot we don't know.
Even if they don't become ill themselves, children can also contribute to spreading the virus among more vulnerable populations, such as teachers, parents, and grandparents.
Myth: You can't spread COVID-19 if you don't have symptoms.
Efforts to contain the coronavirus by isolating people who are already sick miss a big source of new cases: people with no symptoms at all.
It might seem counterintuitive that apparently healthy people could pose more of a problem than people with a cough or fever, but the data is clear. The US is seeing its biggest surge in infections largely because of people who spread the virus but aren't showing signs of illness, the CDC said in a report in November.
That makes for an insidious issue as people travel and socialize without realizing they're passing along a virus to friends and loved ones.
To make matters worse, we still don't have a consistent understanding of how long people remain contagious. One woman in her 70s, for example, continued to test positive for 100 days despite not having symptoms, and experts think she was contagious for most of that time.
Even as we get closer to having a widely available vaccine, the best ways to protect yourself and loved ones from the virus is to practice social distancing, avoid large gatherings, and wear a mask.