Fake news is dangerous.

Sometimes it’s carefully hidden so that it seems that it’s real.

Here’s a post that was recently shared.

“Good news:
All you Lipitor users rejoice!

Cholesterol is finally officially removed from Naughty List . . .

This means eggs, butter, full-fat dairy products, nuts, coconut oil and meat have now been classified as safe and have been officially removed from the nutrients of concern list . . . 

 

So you can stop trying to change your Cholesterol level. Studies prove beyond a doubt, cholesterol doesn’t cause heart disease and it won’t stop a heart attack.

The majority of people that have heart attacks have normal cholesterol levels . . .

 

Experts say that there is nothing like LDL or HDL . . .

Please share the recent facts about CHOLESTEROL”

The post then referenced a news story in The Washington Post.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/02/10/feds-poised-to-withdraw-longstanding-warnings-about-dietary-cholesterol/?utm_term=.1982832f86fa

By referencing a well-reputed news organisation, many of us might think that this fake news post, put up by some anonymous person, is actually the news story. Even if we didn’t think so, we might conclude that the fake news post is a summary of the news story.

The truth, however, is far from that.

bowl close up cooked cuisine
Photo by Dana Tentis on Pexels.com

The Washington Post news story actually says this:

“The nation’s top nutrition advisory panel has decided to drop its caution about eating cholesterol-laden food . . .

The finding follows an evolution of thinking among many nutritionists who now believe that, for healthy adults, eating foods high in cholesterol may not significantly affect the level of cholesterol in the blood or increase the risk of heart disease.

The greater danger in this regard, these experts believe, lies not in products such as eggs, shrimp or lobster, which are high in cholesterol, but in too many servings of foods heavy with saturated fats, such as fatty meats, whole milk, and butter.”

So the news story is that eating high cholesterol foods does not necessarily increase BLOOD cholesterol.

  1. It does NOT say that one should not be concerned about having high blood cholesterol.
  2. Nor does it declare that there is no difference between LDL and HDL.
  3. Nor does it say that high blood cholesterol doesn’t cause heart disease.
  4. Nor does it state anything about stopping the use of the drug Lipitor.

The fake news post is dangerous.

Some people may actually now follow this advise and stop taking the drug as prescribed by their doctors. Others may now indulge in foods high in saturated fats, thinking that this is now a healthy diet.

You may wonder who, or which parties, are putting out such fake news posts.

Could it perhaps be coming from the global dairy and meat industry?

One can only guess.

In a world riddled by fake news, we need to be so very careful. Our antenna, our feelers, need to be active, constantly hunting out those deceptive news stories. We need to teach ourselves how to weed out the fake stuff from genuine news items. We must never share something if we’re not 100% sure. In a world where we’re constantly scrolling and clicking, this can be difficult. But we must be even more discerning, more cautious than ever before.

We must teach ourselves Fake News 101!