Hello Health Desk!
As we enter 2023, the crisis to get quality COVID-19 information to journalists and fact-checkers looks different than it did when many of our experts first first banded together in 2020 to rapidly respond to questions about mask guidance and social distancing. Right now, we’re thinking seriously about how to adapt this project for a new information landscape that is now characterized by an endemic virus and growing access to information about COVID-19.
We’re going to pause Health Desk operations through at least January 2023 while we reflect on what’s best for our users. If demand for a product like Health Desk increases during this time, we’ll revisit the decision promptly.
In 2022 our team focused on researching how misinformation spreads and who is involved in disseminating false claims. So before we go, we want to share a few highlights of our recent work before we start our extended hiatus from Health Desk.
Most importantly, we’d like to thank you for always asking us such thought-provoking and interesting questions about health and science. Stay tuned for what’s next!
Gendered health misinformation: A primer for journalists
This fall Meedan released a report on health misinformation that is specific to women, trans people, and nonbinary people. Today’s online spaces can lead to misleading and harmful ecosystems of gendered misinformation. The false narratives aren’t just inconvenient—they can contribute to myths and in some cases lead to adverse health outcomes.
We developed an applied resource examining the concept of gendered health misinformation and how it may present to online users. The report covers three case studies:
Pregnancy and infant care misinformation
Gender-affirming care misinformation
Abortion misinformation
We reviewed claims on social media, interviewed health experts, and consulted existing literature in order to put together this primer. Our hope is that the document is of use to fact-checkers, journalists, civil society organizations, industry, and any stakeholder working on online information quality and equity.
And now, you asked, we answered:
Has the pandemic increased infant mortality among indigenous people?
We do not yet have clear data on how infant mortality has (or has not) shifted among indigenous groups in the U.S., Canada, or other countries around the world since before and after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, data indicate that it is possible, if not likely, that the infant mortality rate among these groups increased during the pandemic.
“This possibility may be due to a few factors:
Infant mortality appears to have increased overall due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Infant mortality rates among indigenous people were already high before the pandemic (and higher than non-indigenous groups)
Some data shows that life expectancy dropped among indigenous groups during the COVID-19 pandemic
Access to healthcare overall and for indigenous groups worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Can mRNA transfer to babies through breast milk after vaccination?
Some research so far has found very, very small amounts of vaccine mRNA in breastfeeding infants following their breastfeeding parent getting an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. Other research has not detected any mRNA in this case. More research is needed, but overall vaccines are recommended for people who are breastfeeding. There is no established risk associated with getting an mRNA vaccine while breastfeeding for the baby or for the breastfeeding person.
“The amount of mRNA in the overall breastmilk that one of these studies found can be thought of as similar to one drop of water in an olympic-sized swimming pool, or to two small blades of grass on a football field.”
What are anti-sperm antibodies and can you test for them?
Antisperm antibodies (ASAs) are proteins that can attack sperm and cause fertility problems. They are made by the body’s immune system and can be present in people of the male or female sex. ASAs are not believed to be common, based on data. Much more research is needed on why some bodies develop ASAs, but it is likely due to a range of possible reasons. Importantly, the presence of ASAs in someone does not directly indicate that they have previously had sex.
“The absence or presence of anti-sperm antibodies (ASAs) is also not related to previous sexual activity. This means that ASAs can not indicate whether or not someone has had sex before. ASAs in people with a cervix may result from genital or gynecological infections, trauma or injury to the vaginal mucosa, or anal or oral sex wherein sperm enter the digestive tract.”
Don’t forget to check out health-desk.org for hundreds of explainers on all your health and science questions. That’s it for this year. Wishing you a peaceful end of 2022 and start to 2023. See you next year!