Dr Jess Stokes Parish (science communicator and ICU nurse) joins Preeya to tackle the beast of health misinformation. Why was Belle Gibson so effective at spreading false information? Was Belle unique or is the issue far more widespread? How do you spot dodgy health content online when there’s so much of it and even qualified health professionals get confused at times? This episode includes practical tips to navigate this space (for both community members and health professionals).
If you want to check out more about the CRABS framework referred to in the episode check out: https://www.jessicastokesparish.com/blog/crabs-the-credibility-framework
Anti-Vaccine Cartoon
https://museumandarchives.redcross.org.uk/objects/46927
History of Vaccines
https://historyofvaccines.org/vaccines-101/misconceptions-about-vaccines/history-anti-vaccination-movements
Taylor et al (2014). Vaccines are not associated with autism: an evidence-based meta-analysis of case-control and cohort studies. Vaccine.
Hviid et al 2019. Measles, Mumps, Rubella Vaccination and Autism: A Nationwide Cohort Study. Annals of Internal Medicine.
SKAI. 2025. What about autism? https://skai.org.au/childhood/questions/what-about-autism
Pugh et al 2022. The unnaturalistic fallacy: COVID-19 vaccine mandates should not discriminate against natural immunity. BMJ Journal of Medical Ethics.
CHOP. 2021. Immune System and Vaccines. https://www.chop.edu/vaccine-education-center/human-immune-system/immune-system-and-vaccines
https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/what-are-determinants-of-health
Health literacy, social media and misinformation
https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-022-13599-7
Zang et al 2023. What Do We Mean When We Talk about Trust in Social Media? A Systematic Review. rXiv:2302.03671v1
Lewandowsky et al (2012). Misinformation and its correction: continued influence and successful debiasing. DOI: 10.1177/1529100612451018
Lewandowsky et al (2020). The Debunking Handbook 2020. DOI:10.17910/b7.1182
Al Khaja, K.A.J., AlKhaja, A.K. & Sequeira, R.P. Drug information, misinformation, and disinformation on social media: a content analysis study. J Public Health Pol 39, 343–357 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41271-018-0131-2
Denniss, E., Lindberg, R., Marchese, L.E. et al. #Fail: the quality and accuracy of nutrition-related information by influential Australian Instagram accounts. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act 21, 16 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12966-024-01565-y
Mueller SM, Jungo P, Cajacob L, Schwegler S, Itin P, Brandt O
The Absence of Evidence is Evidence of Non-Sense: Cross-Sectional Study on the Quality of Psoriasis-Related Videos on YouTube and Their Reception by Health Seekers
J Med Internet Res 2019;21(1):e11935
Chung et al (2012). Safe infant sleep recommendations on the internet: let's google it. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2012.06.004
Daraz et al (2019). Can patients trust online health information? a meta-narrative systematic review addressing the quality of health information on the internet. DOI: 10.1007/s116606-019-05109-0
Stokes-Parish J. Navigating the Credibility of Web-Based Information During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Using Mnemonics to Empower the Public to Spot Red Flags in Health Information on the Internet. J Med Internet Res 2022;24(6):e38269
doi: 10.2196/38269
Sunscreen Misinformation
Cathal O'Connor, Siobhán Rafferty, Michelle Murphy, A qualitative review of misinformation and conspiracy theories in skin cancer, Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, Volume 47, Issue 10, 1 October 2022, Pages 1848–1852, https://doi.org/10.1111/ced.15249
Instagram: @doctor.preeya.alexander
Books: Eat, Sleep, Play, Love by Dr Preeya Alexander
Full Plate, out now
To find out more about AIA Australia head to www.aia.com.au
