Samantha Vs Doctor: Row Over Actress' Health Advice And Doctor's Counter (Photo @theliverdr )
Actress Samantha Ruth Prabhu recently sparked a controversy after sharing an Instagram post, recommending ‘alternative therapies’ to treat certain infections. The actress is facing backlash for suggesting ‘baseless medical practices’ through social media after a doctor flagged his concern about the South Indian actress’ post. Samantha had suggested inhaling hydrogen peroxide nebulisation to treat viral infections.
Notably, an X user and hepatologist’s handle ‘The Liver Doc’ slammed the actor labelling her health and science “illiterate” for propagating pseudoscientific advice to her followers on social media. The doctor warned dangers of inhaling hydrogen peroxide citing reports of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. The doctor, Cyriac Abby Philips, also asked the ministry whether they address the concerns of social media influencers spreading health-related misinformation, potentially endangering public well-being. He also suggested a jail sentence for the Kushi actress for endangering public health.
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Left: Influential Indian actress Ms. Samantha Ruth who is unfortunately a health and science illiterate advising millions of her followers to inhale hydrogen-peroxide to prevent and treat respiratory viral infections.
Right: Scientific society, The Asthma and Allergy Foundation… pic.twitter.com/Ihn2xocKUt
— TheLiverDoc (@theliverdr) July 4, 2024
Addressing the “Liver Doc” post, the Eega actress later issued a long statement in her Instagram and asked the doctor to be polite with his words, stating, “A certain gentleman has attacked my post and my intention with rather strong words.”
Notably, within hours, the doctor took to X again to respond to the actor’s clarification, saying that the actor was playing the victim card and endorsing more alternative practices.
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The doctor in his latest post called her a “serial offender in the context of healthcare misinformation,” noting that she has been in the line of fire previously too.
“The reason why doctors like me have to spend (waste) time from our busy schedules to fight misinformation online is that it is peddled by large influential “celebrity” accounts that have no regard for public health,” the doctor said, adding that the social media engagement and monetisation are the concern of the influencers.
He further emphasised that the public health and disease prevention is his concern and everyone will be “provocative, strongly criticise, be blatant, and brutal with fact.”
The doctor also stated that a rational and logical response by the actor would be to delete the public health-endangering posts and apologise to her followers.
The doctor further expressed pessimism in the possibility of addressing the pervasive misinformation on health-related subjects and improving scientific temperament or rationalism in this country.
“Everyone role plays the victim of “scientific criticism” but will keep embracing and holding on to dogmatic views in healthcare, traditional untested observations or debunked dangerous therapies without shame or self-reflection. If celebrity influencers really want to impact people positively, then start unlearning and re-learn, develop critical thinking skills, disregard logical fallacies and stand up for medical science instead of “playing the victim” to the same science that is helping you, and all of us, survive into the future. I won’t be commenting or debunking any of Samantha’s future endorsements of pseudoscientific alternative public health-endangering posts because “You can’t help people that don’t want to be helped,” he concluded.
Ms. Samantha Ruth Prabhu has responded to my “provocative” criticism of her endorsement of unscientific, pseudoscientific and baseless alternative medicine therapies by playing the victim card and endorsing more alternative practices.
Please note, she is a serial offender in… https://t.co/eRvsXrGlZq pic.twitter.com/iRadZgrHTE
— TheLiverDoc (@theliverdr) July 5, 2024
In her long post addressing the criticism by the doctor, Samantha had said that over the past years, she has taken different medicines and treatments. She said that she is not naive enough to go about strongly advocating a treatment. “I merely suggested with good intention,” she said, adding the doctor’s reaction was provocative, especially the bite where he suggested a prison sentence.
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