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Iria Carballo-Carbajal

Science Editor

Iria earned an undergraduate degree in biology and an MSc in secondary education from the University of Oviedo (Spain). After obtaining her PhD in Neuroscience from the University of Tuebingen (Germany), she then worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Vall d’Hebrón Research Institute (Barcelona, Spain). Her research has focused on understanding the molecular basis of Parkinson’s disease to search for new potential treatments.

The Science Feedback team

CLAIM REVIEWS

The current U.S. generation is healthier than previous ones partly because vaccines reduced infectious diseases; childhood immunization schedules are safe, contrary to chiropractor’s claims
CLAIM
“look at the [vaccination] schedule, we have gotten sicker and sicker”; “the biggest jump in shots came after the 1986 vaccine protection act”

SOURCE: Patrick Flynn, Facebook

Published: 13 Apr 2021

VERDICT

COVID-19 vaccines are critical for controlling the pandemic; vaccines still offer partial protection against new variants of the virus
CLAIM
COVID-19 mass vaccination will select for more virulent variants of the virus that causes COVID-19, which will escape vaccine-induced immunity and cause more severe disease

SOURCE: Geert Vanden Bossche, Children’s Health Defense, The HighWire

Published: 23 Mar 2021

VERDICT

Six residents in a German nursing home died from COVID-19, not from vaccines
CLAIM
“25% of residents in German nursing home died after Pfizer vaccine”; a team including a soldier in uniform used force to vaccinate residents

SOURCE: Anonymous, Children’s Health Defense

Published: 06 Mar 2021

VERDICT

Pregnant women can decide whether to receive the COVID-19 vaccine; safety monitoring suggests that COVID-19 vaccines don’t pose any specific risk for pregnant women
CLAIM
“Health officials push pregnant women to get covid shots, despite known risks”

SOURCE: Anonymous, Children’s Health Defense

Published: 01 Mar 2021

VERDICT

Misleading to compare the safety of COVID-19 and flu vaccines based solely on VAERS reports; VAERS reports alone cannot demonstrate that a vaccine caused an adverse event
CLAIM
One person is 300 to 900 times “more likely to die” after getting the COVID-19 vaccine than the flu vaccine; “Adverse events are widely underreported”

SOURCE: Alex Berenson, Twitter, Facebook

Published: 17 Feb 2021

VERDICT

COVID-19 vaccines approved for emergency use prevent the disease and are generally safe based on rigorous clinical trials and ongoing monitoring
CLAIM
“No one can possibly know if the [COVID-19] vaccine is safe and effective because the trial is still underway; “Thousands of people who had the vaccine have died or been seriously injured by it”

SOURCE: Vernon Coleman, Charlie Ward

Published: 11 Feb 2021

VERDICT

The American Journal of Medicine didn’t recommend hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19; scientific evidence doesn’t show hydroxychloroquine is effective against COVID-19
CLAIM
The “American Journal of Medicine admit their stand on [hydroxychloroquine] was wrong"; it “published evidence that hydroxychloroquine is effective for preventing COVID-19"

SOURCE: Jim Hoft, Gateway Pundit

Published: 03 Feb 2021

VERDICT

COVID-19 vaccines currently in use stimulate immunity to the same degree as natural infection without exposing the vaccinated person to the risks associated with the disease
CLAIM
“Merck Scraps COVID Vaccines; Says It’s More Effective To Get The Virus And Recover”

SOURCE: Steve Watson, Summit News

Published: 29 Jan 2021

VERDICT

Overwhelming weight of scientific evidence demonstrates that vaccines are safe and effective, contrary to claims in video by chiropractor Steve Baker
CLAIM
There are many reasons to not vaccinate, including vaccine toxicity; “Vaccines don’t prevent transmission”; "Vaccinated kids are not as healthy as unvaccinated kids"

SOURCE: Steven Baker, Facebook

Published: 21 Jan 2021

VERDICT

Lower flu activity this season likely due to COVID-19 restrictions, increased flu vaccination, and other factors, not to misdiagnosis of flu cases as COVID-19
CLAIM
"There is no evidence to support the contention that masks would stop influenza while failing to stop COVID”; “Influenza has been renamed COVID-19 in large part”

SOURCE: Daniel Payne, Just the News

Published: 17 Jan 2021

VERDICT