Exposed: US Government Report Relies on Fabricated Sources, Say Experts

A recent US government report has stirred up a lot of controversy. It claimed to highlight a "chronic disease crisis" among children but included sources that don’t actually exist. Some academics named as authors of these studies have denied ever writing them.

This report, first released on May 22, faced scrutiny when digital outlet NOTUS discovered it cited seven fake sources. An updated version was issued on May 29, with some officials downplaying the issue as mere "formatting problems." White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said these errors don’t change the overall findings of the report.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the US Health Secretary leading the department that published the report, has a history of promoting debunked theories, including the false claim that vaccines cause autism. This report ties back to President Donald Trump’s executive order earlier this year. The order aimed to "study the scope of the childhood chronic disease crisis and any potential contributing causes."

The report was released by the Make America Healthy Again Commission. It pointed to poor diets, environmental toxins, stress, lack of physical activity, and overmedicalization as potential causes of illness among children.

However, researchers like Guohua Li, a professor at Columbia University, say they were incorrectly cited. Li mentioned that he doesn’t even know the co-author named in the report. Another researcher, Noah Kreski, echoed this, stating that the alleged study doesn’t seem to exist at all.

Katherine Keyes, another academic wrongly identified, expressed concern about the integrity of scientific citations, which are crucial for reliable research. A separate claim about a study on youth advertising for psychotropic medications also fell apart when the actual university confirmed that the listed author did not write it.

The Democratic National Committee criticized RFK Jr.’s department for using nonexistent sources to support its claims, calling it a dangerous misrepresentation of facts. Since taking office in February, RFK Jr. has taken drastic steps, including cutting jobs within the health department and proposing placebo trials for new vaccines.

This incident raises questions about the importance of accurate data in public health discussions. As communities face rising health challenges, ensuring that reports are credible is more vital than ever. Accurate research informs policy and helps protect the wellbeing of children, making it crucial for information to be reliable.

For further details, you can read the full Make America Healthy Again Commission report here and the Democratic National Committee’s response here.

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