This Is Me Trying
Three Things Thursday
Three Things Thursday highlights three things I am paying attention to as an epidemiologist each week. This week marked President Trump’s 100th day in office. During these 100 days, public health has been dismantled. Billions of dollars of public health funding have been cut, 10s of 1000s of public health workers have been fired, surveillance systems have ended, and research has been stopped. We are preparing for major changes to vaccine requirements and nutritional guidelines.
All in the name of Making America Healthy Again.
There is NO science, data, or support for the decisions being made or policies being proposed. We have people in power who are standing in denial of science and threatening the very essence of our democracy.
Science, expertise, and evidence are not important to the Trump Administration. Nor is caring for those who are poor, uninsured, pregnant, autistic, or addicted.
These past 100 days have been brutal; it has been death by 1000 cuts.
As I wrote on Tuesday (to mark Trump’s 100th day) —
“I am trying to keep my head up…
I will not stop learning, teaching, communicating, fighting misinformation, or building community. I am continuing to double down on my mission and will continue to work hard and more collaboratively to CREATE HEALTHY COMMUNITIES FOR ALL.”
Truth be told, these past 100 days have been exceptionally hard on me. In the words of Taylor Swift —
“And I just wanted you to know
That this is me trying
(And maybe I don't quite know what to say)
I just wanted you to know
That this is me trying
At least I'm trying”
I am trying to learn, teach, communicate, fight information, and build community. However, some days end with me locking myself in the bathroom and reading magazines from the side of the bathtub. I’m also escaping from reality by watching silly TV shows, like Shining Vale, which I’m not even sure if I like or not. And some nights I go to bed early, where I cry tears of frustration and heartache.
But this is me trying.
I am committed to —
Using data/science to create public health (aka preventative health) programs, policies, and interventions to save lives and decrease suffering.
Fighting misinformation.
Inspiring others to understand the science to make healthy decisions and create healthy communities.
With that, here are this week’s three health news stories you need to know about.
Hoping this post helps to educate and empower you
to be healthy and create healthy communities.
“Do Your Own Research” Is the WRONG Message
Yesterday, RFK Jr. sat down for an interview with Dr. Phil. When asked about whether or not parents should vaccinate their children, RFK Jr stated (according to The New York Times) —
“I would say that we live in a democracy, and part of the responsibility of being a parent is to do your own research. You research the baby stroller, you research the foods that they’re getting, and you need to research the medicines that they’re taking as well.”
“Do your own research” translates to Google it. And because of the internet algorithms and paywalls at medical journals, the results of an internet search of vaccine safety usually result in a list of resources filled with mis/disinformation. Googling is not the equivalent of a systematic approach or investigation that seeks the truth, which is what (actual) research is.
By advocating for individuals to do their own research, RFK Jr is —
Requiring individuals to do the work. Work that (1) many in our communities are not trained or equipped to do, and (2) has already been done by public health and medical professionals. This undermines the expertise of individuals who have spent decades studying and practicing in the field. And it kills trust. If you can do your own research, why do you need a doctor, pharmacist, health educator, or mental health counselor?
Doing your own research breaks apart communities and establishes a culture where we do not need each other and do not value the unique skills and talents each of us has. It increases loneliness. And ultimately, it leads to increased disease and death.
The parents of the two children in Texas who have died from measles did their own research. They elected to ignore the entire canon of epidemiological research on the safety and efficacy of the MMR vaccine. And their children are dead.
Saying “do your own research” is deadly advice.
Instead, we should—
Find trusted sources of information. The internet can be a dark place, and finding up-to-date and reliable summaries of research is hard work. Sifting through 1000s upon 1000s of articles in a multidecade history of research is a full-time job, and reading the entire history will not provide you with the information you need to understand that vaccines are safe and effective. Please stay here with me for reliable and actionable health news. Subscribe to get updates from me here!
Ask questions and engage in dialogue. I think we all need to step away from Facebook, Twitter/X, and the Google search engine. It is time to ask questions — take them to your physician. Find a local epidemiologist. Ask me — I’m an epidemiologist, health communicator, public health advocate, and mother (of two kiddos) — your questions. Acknowledge what you know and don’t know. And engage in a conversation (not internet research or arguing). Remember that we share a common enemy — misinformation and disease — and there are clear steps we can all take to slow the spread of disease within our communities.
The End of CDC’s Advisory Committees?
On Tuesday, several members of CDC's Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC) received termination letters, and the committee’s webpage was archived.
There is concern among many in the public health and medical communities (myself included) that (1) with the committee being terminated, there will be an increase in the number of hospital-acquired infections; and (2) this may be just the first of many advisory committees to be dissolved by the Trump Administration.
According to STATNews — ACIP, CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which was established in 1964 under the Public Health Service Act, would require an act of Congress to dissolve. HICPAC was regulated under the Federal Advisory Committee Act and only requires a renewal of its charter at a regular interval. However, we have seen the Trump Administration use executive authority to bypass policies, procedures, and laws to accomplish what it wants.
Terminating the HICPAC feels like foreshadowing. Or the canary in the coal mine.
Without advisory groups, which engage in meaningful conversation and review in great detail the science, policies, and producers that directly affect your health will be made willy-nilly. Again, this will result in increased misinformation and deaths.
None of this is acceptable.
Panic & Distrust in the Autism Community
Two weeks ago, RFK Jr made some outrageous comments about autism in response to new research that reports that the rate of autism has increased from 1 in 36 children in 2020 to 1 in 31 in 2022. His comments were untrue, false, LIES. They increased stigma around autism. His words were hurtful, thoughtless, and insulting. They are comments that I will not repeat.1
I will repeat and emphasize what Rex Huppke wrote in USA Today —
Kennedy dehumanizes autistic kids while denying proven science.
Two weeks later, researchers and medical providers across the country are reporting that people with autism and parents of autistic kids are asking clinicians to erase their diagnoses and canceling appointments with medical professionals. According to STATNews —
“The cancellations are driven by panic and distrust among the autism community in response to the recent remarks made by health secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and National Institutes of Health Director Jay Bhattacharya…
Several people interviewed for this article expressed fears that an autism diagnosis could eventually put them or their children at risk of involuntary confinement similar to “reeducation camps” in Germany when the Nazi regime took power in the 1930s. They point to the Trump administration’s push to detain immigrants without, their advocates say, due process.
As a result, individuals with autism are not being evaluated, diagnosed, and treated. And decades of autism research are being dismantled.
Trust has been broken.
And fear is a greater risk than not being seen by a medical professional.
As I wrote several weeks ago —
The Story of Public Health Looks a Lot Like a Tragedy Now
What can you do?
Click the “Like” button on the posts you enjoy. It’s a small thing, but it helps.
Share posts, either on social media or with your friends and family.
Comment on the posts. Hearing from you is a form of encouragement & it helps move Epi(demiology) Matters up in the Substack algorithm.
Send me your ideas & questions.
Epi(demiology) Matters is written by Dr. Becky Dawson, PhD MPH — an epidemiologist, teacher, mom, wife, and dedicated yogi. She is a tenured professor at Allegheny College, Research Director at a community hospital, and an exclusive contributor (all things health & medicine) at Erie News Now (NBC/CBS). Her goal is to create healthy communities for all. She writes Epi Matters — first & foremost because epidemiology does matter (to all of us) and she hopes that each post will help to educate and empower readers to be healthy and create healthy communities.
Be sure you and your friends and family are subscribed so you don’t miss a post —
Epi(demiology) Matters is free — because science, reports, news, updates, and alerts about health should NOT be behind a paywall. EVER. Everyone needs access to up-to-date health information in order to be healthy and create healthy communities for all.
Please continue to pass on information and knowledge to us. I value your knowledge and your efforts. I use the NIH sites and CDC site for info - so afraid that we will not have up to date/ accurate info going forward.