logo
episode-header-image
Sep 2019
23m 19s

The problem with the viral celery juice ...

Bbc World Service
About this episode

The Medical Medium has millions of followers on social media. He claims he can help cure your chronic illness with home remedies like celery juice.

But he doesn’t have any medical qualifications. Instead, he claims he gets his medical information from communicating with spirits.

Thousands of people online say he’s helped them. But could his claims be stopping patients seeking the medical help they need. And is the rise of unqualified influencers creating distrust in real doctors?

We explore the booming celery juice trend and meet the doctor who is trying to start a counter-movement to get qualified medical professionals to use social media more effectively.

Presenter: Jonathan Griffin Reporter: Ione Wells

(Photo Caption: Screenshot of the Medical Medium Instagram account / Photo Credit: Instagram)

Up next
Jun 2024
Trending is moving to the Documentary Podcast
BBC Trending's podcast feed is closing, but we'll be publishing new episodes in the BBC World Service's Documentary Podcast from now on. Search for The Documentary wherever you get your BBC podcasts, and subscribe to get new episodes of BBC Trending along with a range of exciting ... Show More
43s
Jun 2024
Colombia’s guerrilla recruitment video problem
Fighters from dissident armed groups in Colombia are using TikTok to glorify their lives as guerrillas and recruit youngsters.These armed groups didn't like the terms of a peace treaty negotiated between the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the government in 2016 ... Show More
18m 6s
Jun 2024
The Kenyan influencer championing climate denial
Jusper Machogu is a farmer from southwestern Kenya who describes himself as a “climate sceptic”: he wrongly claims that climate change is a “scam” or a “hoax” designed to hold Africa back. On social media, he has also become known as a staunch defender of fossil fuel exploration ... Show More
18m 7s
Recommended Episodes
Jun 2024
Social Media's Evolution in Medicine & Medical Missions. #415
SEND US A TEXT MESSAGE!!! Let Drs. Nii & Renee know what you think about the show!In the past, doctors who were social media influencers faced backlash from their colleagues and the public whereas recently, most patients expect doctors to have a social media presence to sort of p ... Show More
30m 48s
Jun 2024
America’s Top Doctor on Why He Wants Warning Labels on Social Media
Warning: This episode contains mentions of bullying and suicide.A rising tide of mental health problems among teenagers has sent parents, teachers and doctors searching for answers. This week, the U.S. surgeon general, Dr. Vivek H. Murthy, offered one: social media.Today, Dr. Mur ... Show More
32m 23s
Oct 2023
Pills vs Potions: The LiverDoc’s Argument Against ‘Alternate’ Medicine (Part 1)
The debate about the efficacy of Ayurveda versus Allopathy is not new. But this time it is playing out in the courtroom. Himalaya Wellness Corporation, a leading herbal health and personal care company, has in its suit stated that it has lost business due to defamatory allegation ... Show More
36m 32s
Oct 2022
Ep. 1040 - Woke Med Students Disavow Science, Biology, and Modern Medicine 
Click here to join the member exclusive portion of my show: https://utm.io/ueSEm   Today on the Matt Walsh Show, med students participate in a bizarre incantation ritual where they pledge to reject the gender binary and show respect for primitive medical practices. This is what m ... Show More
1h 5m
Jul 2023
The Sunday Read: ‘The Moral Crisis of America’s Doctors’
Some years ago, a psychiatrist named Wendy Dean read an article about a physician who died by suicide. Such deaths were distressingly common, she discovered. The suicide rate among doctors appeared to be even higher than the rate among active military members, a notion that start ... Show More
31m 12s
Mar 2023
CC Flashback: Should your doctor be an influencer?
We’re working on the next season of Creative Control. In the meantime, we’re revisiting this still-relevant topic: doctors on platforms like TikTok and Twitter making medicine less of a mystery for people—and becoming celebrities along the way.But the ethics of being a medical in ... Show More
41m 48s
Jun 2021
Ep 902 | How Government and Corporate Control of Medicine Censored COVID Treatment | Guest: Dr. Mobeen Syed
America’s medical system, along with most doctors, was not prepared to think outside the box to treat COVID, according to today’s guest. Dr. Mobeen Syed is founder of DrBeen, a medical education program designed to train today’s doctors in medical innovation. He is one of the doc ... Show More
1h 5m