477 Health claim verifications avg. score 5.0/10 172 rated true or mostly true 305 rated false or misleading
“In people with gastrointestinal cancer, gastrointestinal bleeding is commonly caused by bleeding from the tumor.”
The statement overstates what the evidence supports. Tumor bleeding is an important and sometimes leading cause of gastrointestinal bleeding in certain gastrointestinal cancers, especially luminal upper-GI tumors, but broader studies and reviews show many patients bleed from non-tumor causes. Because the frequency varies substantially by tumor site, stage, and study population, the unqualified claim gives a distorted overall picture.
“Among students, procrastination is associated with lower academic performance, such as lower grades or grade point average (GPA).”
The evidence supports a real overall link between student procrastination and lower grades or GPA. Multiple reviews and meta-analytic findings show that higher academic procrastination is generally associated with worse academic performance, though the effect is usually modest rather than large. Some specific subtypes or samples show weak, null, or even positive results, so the pattern is not universal.
“The chemical name of diclofenac is 2-[(2,6-dichlorophenyl)amino]phenylacetic acid.”
The stated name corresponds to diclofenac’s structure, but it is not the preferred formal name in the strongest references. PubChem, NIST, CAS, and peer-reviewed literature consistently use "2-[(2,6-dichlorophenyl)amino]benzeneacetic acid," while the claim’s "phenylacetic acid" wording is a recognized synonym. That makes the claim partly correct but misleading as presented.
“Parasympathetic nervous system fibers have a craniosacral origin, arising from the brainstem and from sacral spinal cord segments S2–S4.”
This matches the standard textbook description of autonomic anatomy. Most educational and clinical references still describe parasympathetic outflow as craniosacral, arising from the brainstem and S2–S4. However, influential recent research argues the sacral outflow may be sympathetic rather than parasympathetic, so the classification is not entirely settled.
“In 2024, M. Alnefaie, W. K. Abdelbasset, and R. Alotaibi published a narrative review titled "The impact of the menstrual cycle on speed, strength, and endurance in female athletes."”
The authors do appear to have published a 2024 narrative review on menstrual-cycle effects on athletic performance, but the quoted title in the claim is not what the best bibliographic record shows. The documented title uses different wording and specifies “professional female athletes.” Because the claim presents an exact title rather than a paraphrase, it overstates the precision of the evidence.
“An article titled "Mental health awareness among Malaysian university students" by A. Bashir and S. Hassan was published in 2022.”
No reliable database evidence supports the existence of a 2022 article with that exact title and author pair. The evidence instead points to a 2020 doctoral thesis by Anam Bashir, supervised by Sheikha Hassan, with a different title. The claimed 2022 article appears to be a miscitation of that thesis, not a real publication.
“If you pluck a gray hair, it will grow back as a gray hair.”
In most cases, a plucked gray hair regrows gray because plucking does not reset the follicle’s pigment system. The follicle’s melanocyte status determines the color of the next hair. The statement is slightly overstated because rare repigmentation can happen, and repeated plucking can damage follicles or affect regrowth.
“Stepping into a lit fireplace will result in being burned.”
For an ordinary person, entering an active fireplace would cause thermal injury very quickly. Medical and safety sources agree that open flames, embers, and intensely heated surfaces in a lit fireplace can burn skin within seconds. The exact severity depends on exposure time and protection, but the core claim is supported.
“The prevalence of depression among university students in Lima Norte, Lima, Peru, is higher than the prevalence of depression among university students in other parts of Lima, Peru.”
The claim is not supported by the available evidence. The cited literature includes studies on Lima Norte students and broader studies on Lima or Peru, but none provide a direct, standardized comparison showing that university students in Lima Norte have higher depression prevalence than students in other parts of Lima. Without that comparison, the claim overstates what the evidence can show.
“A quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay has been developed and validated to detect Gastrodiscoides hominis DNA in clinical or environmental samples.”
The claim is not supported by the cited evidence. Available reviews, guidance, and assay-development papers do not identify a validated qPCR assay for Gastrodiscoides hominis, while the molecular evidence cited for this parasite is limited to conventional PCR plus sequencing in isolated reports. That is not the same as a developed and validated qPCR test for clinical or environmental samples.
“Massaging lemon juice on a scar for about 10 minutes two to three times per week lightens the skin and helps remove old scars.”
The evidence does not support lemon juice as a reliable way to lighten or remove old scars. Research on scars favors other treatments, while studies on AHAs or topical vitamin C involve standardized formulations, not raw lemon juice. Citrus can also irritate skin and cause phototoxic reactions that may worsen discoloration.
“Anemia is one of the most prevalent public health problems in Peru, especially among children under 5 years old.”
Anemia is clearly a major and highly prevalent health problem among young children in Peru, but the claim overstates what the evidence directly shows. National and international data support a high burden in children under 5, often around 30% nationally and higher in younger subgroups. What is not firmly established here is the broader comparative claim that anemia is 'one of the most prevalent public health problems' in Peru across all health conditions and populations.
“For learners with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), a well-structured educational environment characterized by predictability and smooth transitions is the strongest predictor of both short-term and long-term academic success.”
The evidence supports structured, predictable environments as beneficial for many autistic learners, but not as the strongest predictor of academic success. More rigorous studies point instead to cognitive and developmental factors such as executive functioning, IQ, language, and processing speed, with other influences varying by age and setting. No strong evidence establishes classroom structure and transitions as the top predictor across both short- and long-term outcomes.
“Suggestopedia is an effective teaching method for improving learning outcomes.”
Suggestopedia may help in some language-learning settings, but the evidence does not support a broad claim of effectiveness for improving learning outcomes generally. The main positive meta-analysis is decades old and based on studies with methodological weaknesses. More recent summaries note inconsistent replication, disputed strong claims, and major limits on where the method works well.
“Vitamin K helps vitamin D absorption for bone health.”
The evidence does not show that vitamin K helps the body absorb vitamin D. What reliable sources do support is that vitamins D and K can work together in bone health through different roles: vitamin D helps regulate calcium and induces certain proteins, while vitamin K activates some of those proteins. That makes the claim directionally related to a real interaction, but wrong in its stated mechanism.
“Boron helps with magnesium metabolism in humans.”
Evidence supports a modest effect of boron on how the body handles magnesium, but the evidence base is limited and does not show a broad clinical benefit for everyone. Human studies and NIH-reviewed literature report changes such as higher serum magnesium or lower urinary magnesium loss with boron supplementation. However, these findings come mainly from small, context-specific studies.
“Hantavirus infection can be transmitted from an infected person to other people during the incubation period.”
The claim is not supported by the evidence. Public-health authorities state that person-to-person transmission is mainly associated with Andes virus, not hantaviruses generally, and available evidence points to transmission primarily at or after early symptom onset. At most, a very limited pre-symptomatic window near symptom onset has been discussed, which is not the same as saying transmission occurs during the incubation period broadly.
“A person infected with hantavirus transmits the virus to an average of three other people.”
The evidence does not support an average of three secondary infections per hantavirus case. Public-health agencies state that hantaviruses are usually acquired from rodents, not other people, and documented person-to-person spread is limited to Andes virus and is rare. Reports of 3-4 onward infections describe unusual cluster maxima, not the average infected person.
“Hantavirus is less infectious than SARS-CoV-2 was during the 2019–2020 COVID-19 outbreak.”
The evidence strongly supports the comparison in ordinary public-health terms. SARS-CoV-2 spread efficiently between humans during the 2019-2020 outbreak, while hantavirus infections are usually rodent-to-human and rarely spread person-to-person. Limited Andes virus exceptions do not overturn the broader conclusion.
“Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is transmitted through the exchange of bodily fluids.”
The claim captures the general mechanism but is too broad as written. HIV is transmitted only through certain infected body fluids—not bodily fluids in general—and only under specific exposure conditions, such as contact with mucous membranes, damaged tissue, or direct bloodstream access. Without that context, the statement can reinforce common misconceptions about saliva, sweat, tears, and casual contact.