Health

For Some Measles Patients, Vitamin A Remedy Supported by RFK Jr. Leaves Them More Ill

Published

9 months ago

March 26, 2025

For Some Measles Patients, Vitamin A Remedy Supported by RFK Jr. Leaves Them More Ill

Doctors in West Texas are seeing measles patients whose illnesses have been complicated by an alternative therapy endorsed by vaccine skeptics including Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health secretary.

Parents in Gaines County, Texas, the center of a raging measles outbreak, have increasingly turned to supplements and unproven treatments to protect their children, many of whom are unvaccinated, against the virus.

One of those supplements is cod liver oil containing vitamin A, which Mr. Kennedy has promoted as a near miraculous cure for measles. Physicians at Covenant Children’s Hospital in Lubbock, Texas, say they’ve now treated a handful of unvaccinated children who were given so much vitamin A that they had signs of liver damage.

Some of them had received unsafe doses of cod liver oil and other vitamin A supplements for several weeks in an attempt to prevent a measles infection, said Dr. Summer Davies, who cares for acutely ill children at the hospital.

“I had a patient that was only sick a couple of days, four or five days, but had been taking it for like three weeks,” Dr. Davies said.

While doctors sometimes administer high doses of vitamin A in a hospital to manage severe measles, experts do not recommend taking it without physician supervision. Vitamin A is not an effective way to prevent measles; however, two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine are about 97 percent effective.

At high doses, vitamin A can cause liver damage; dry, peeling skin; hair loss; and, in rare instances, seizures and coma. So far, doctors at West Texas hospitals have said they’ve seen patients with yellowed skin and high levels of liver enzymes in their bloodwork, both signs of a damaged liver.

Many of those patients had been in the hospital for a severe measles infection; doctors discovered the liver damage only after routine lab work.

As of Tuesday, the outbreak, which began in January, had spread to more than 320 people in Texas. Forty patients have been hospitalized, and one child has died.

In neighboring New Mexico counties, the virus has sickened 43 and hospitalized two. Seven confirmed cases in Oklahoma have also been linked to the outbreak.

Local doctors and health officials have become increasingly concerned about the growing popularity of unproven remedies for preventing and treating measles, which they fear is causing people to delay critical medical treatment and to reject vaccination, the only proven way to prevent a measles infection.

In Gaines County, alternative medicine has always been popular. Many in the area’s large Mennonite community, where most cases have been clustered, avoid interacting with the medical system and adhere to a long tradition of natural remedies.

Health officials said the recent popularity of vitamin A use for measles could be traced back to a Fox News interview with Mr. Kennedy, in which he said he had heard of “almost miraculous and instantaneous recovery” with treatments like cod liver oil, which he said was “the safest application of vitamin A.”

In an opinion essay for The Washington Post on Tuesday afternoon, Kevin Griffis, who was until last week the communications director at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, wrote that he had resigned in part because of Mr. Kennedy’s handling of the outbreak.

“In my final weeks at the C.D.C., I watched as career infectious-disease experts were tasked with spending precious hours searching medical literature in vain for data to support Kennedy’s preferred treatments,” Mr. Griffis wrote.

In the weeks after the Fox News interview, drugstores in West Texas struggled to keep vitamin A and cod liver oil supplements on their shelves. “I did not hear anything about vitamin A until he said it on television,” said Katherine Wells, the director of public health in Lubbock.

One local doctor — whom Mr. Kennedy named in the Fox News interview as one of the physicians who had told him “what is working on the ground”— opened a makeshift clinic in Gaines County and began doling out various treatments, including vitamin A supplements, to treat active measles cases and to prevent infection.

Dr. Davies said she suspected that a majority of the children she had treated had taken vitamin A supplements at home.

Experts say that vitamin A can play an important role in the “supportive care” that doctors provide to patients with severe measles infections.

It works by replenishing the bodily stores depleted by the virus, which bolsters the immune system, said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

In the hospital, physicians give only two doses of the vitamin to children with measles, usually over the course of two days, and “very carefully calibrate” the amounts depending on age and weight, he said.

Dr. Schaffner emphasized that it is not a miracle treatment for the virus, and that there is no antiviral medication for measles. And there is no credible evidence that vitamin A helps prevent infection in children in the United States, where vitamin A deficiencies are exceedingly rare.

In fact, giving children repeated, high doses of the vitamin is dangerous. Unlike other vitamins, which are flushed out of the body through urine, excess vitamin A accumulates in fat tissue, making it more likely to reach dangerous levels over time.

“That kind of preventative use I think is especially concerning,” said Dr. Lara Johnson, another doctor at the Lubbock hospital.

“When we have kids taking it for weeks and weeks, then you do potentially have a cumulative impact of the toxicity,” she added.

Dr. Johnson added that local physicians were particularly concerned about parents’ relying on over-the-counter supplements — whose labels don’t always accurately reflect the amount of vitamin they contain — and accepting dosage recommendations from unverified sources.

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Health

Common household chemicals linked to increased risk of serious neurological condition

Published

11 hours ago

December 23, 2025

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Common household chemicals linked to increased risk of serious neurological condition

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A study from Sweden’s Uppsala University discovered a link between microplastics and multiple sclerosis (MS).

The research, published in the journal Environmental International, discovered that exposure to two common environmental contaminants, PFAS and PCBs, could increase the risk of the autoimmune disease.

PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as “forever chemicals,” are used in some common household products, such as non-stick cookware, textiles and cleaning products. They have also been found in drinking water throughout the U.S., according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

COMMON CLEANING CHEMICAL TIED TO SPIKE IN LIVER DISEASE ACROSS US, RESEARCHERS SAY

PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, are toxic industrial chemicals once widely used in electrical equipment before being banned decades ago, as stated by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.

The new study findings were based on blood samples of 1,800 Swedish individuals, including about 900 who had recently been diagnosed with MS, according to a university press release.

PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as “forever chemicals,” are used in some common household products, including non-stick cookware. (iStock)

The first phase of the trial studied 14 different PFAS contaminants and three substances that appear when PCBs are broken down in the body. These were then investigated for a link to the odds of diagnosis.

‘FOREVER CHEMICALS’ FOUND IN US DRINKING WATER, MAP SHOWS ‘HOT SPOTS’ OF HIGHEST LEVELS

“We saw that several individual substances, such as PFOS and two hydroxylated PCBs, were linked to increased odds for MS,” lead study author Kim Kultima said in a statement. “People with the highest concentrations of PFOS and PCBs had approximately twice the odds of being diagnosed with MS, compared to those with the lowest concentrations.”

The researchers then examined the combined effects of these substances and found that the mixture was also linked to increased risk.

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Fellow researcher Aina Vaivade noted that risk assessments should consider chemical mixtures, not just individual exposures, because people are typically exposed to multiple substances at the same time.

“We saw that several individual substances, such as PFOS and two hydroxylated PCBs, were linked to increased odds for MS,” the lead study author said. (iStock)

The final phase of the study investigated the relationship between inheritance, chemical exposure and the odds of MS diagnosis, revealing that those who carry a certain gene variant actually have a reduced MS risk.

However, individuals who carried the gene and had higher exposure to PFOS — a singular type of chemical in the PFAS family — had an “unexpected” increased risk of MS.

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“This indicates that there is a complex interaction between inheritance and environmental exposure linked to the odds of MS,” Kultima said.

“We therefore think it is important to understand how environmental contaminants interact with hereditary factors, as this can provide new knowledge about the genesis of MS and could also be relevant for other diseases.”

Multiple sclerosis is a disease that leads to the breakdown of the protective covering of the nerves, according to Mayo Clinic. (iStock)

Fox News senior medical analyst Dr. Marc Siegel commented on these findings in an interview with Fox News Digital.

“MS is a complex disease that is somewhat autoimmune and somewhat post-inflammatory,” said Siegel, who was not involved in the study. “Epstein-Barr virus infection greatly increases the risk of MS.”

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“There is every reason to believe that environmental triggers play a role, including microplastics, and this important study shows a correlation, but not causation — in other words, it doesn’t prove that the microplastics caused MS.”

The study had some limitations, the researchers acknowledged, including that the chemical exposure was measured only once, at the time of blood sampling. This means it may not accurately represent participants’ long-term or past exposure levels relevant to MS development.

“There is every reason to believe that environmental triggers play a role.”

Fox News Digital reached out to several industry groups and manufacturers requesting comment on the potential link between PFAS chemicals and multiple sclerosis.

Several have issued public statements, including the American Chemistry Council, which states on its website that “manufacturers and many users of today’s PFAS are implementing a variety of practices and technologies to help minimize environmental emissions.”

In April 2024, the EPA enacted a new federal rule that sets mandatory limits on certain PFAS chemicals in drinking water, aiming to reduce exposure. The agency also aims to fund testing and treatment efforts.

A woman working out outdoors takes a sip of water from a plastic bottle. (iStock)

Multiple sclerosis is a disease that leads to the breakdown of the protective coverings that surround nerve fibers, according to Mayo Clinic.

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The immune system’s attack on these nerve sheaths can cause numbness, weakness, trouble walking and moving, vision changes and other symptoms, and can lead to permanent damage.

There is currently no cure for MS, Mayo Clinic reports, but treatment is available to manage symptoms and modify the course of the disease.

Angelica Stabile is a lifestyle reporter for Fox News Digital.

Health

Natural Ozempic? 6 GLP-1 Foods That Work Just Like the Shot

Published

23 hours ago

December 22, 2025

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Natural Ozempic? 6 GLP-1 Foods That Work Just Like the Shot

6 GLP-1 Foods That Boost Weight Loss Naturally—No Injections Needed | Woman’s World

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Health

Simple daily habit could help people with type 2 diabetes manage blood sugar

Published

23 hours ago

December 22, 2025

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Simple daily habit could help people with type 2 diabetes manage blood sugar

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Sitting next to a window may help people with type 2 diabetes control their insulin levels, according to new research.

The study, published in Cell Metabolism, found that exposure to natural light — even indoors next to a window — changes how the body processes glucose and uses energy.

People in Western societies spend 80% to 90% of their time under artificial lights, which are much dimmer and less dynamic than sunlight, the researchers noted. Natural daylight is a powerful cue for the body’s internal clock, also known as the circadian rhythm.

EXPERTS REVEAL EXACT BEDTIME THAT COULD PREVENT LATE-NIGHT ‘SECOND WIND’ INSOMNIA

The body’s internal clock influences many processes, including digestion, hormone release and metabolism, according to research. When it gets out of sync, it can worsen insulin resistance and blood sugar control, which are two of the main issues caused by type 2 diabetes.

Typical lighting in homes and offices is much dimmer and lacks the biological signals provided by natural daylight. (iStock)

To test the effects of daylight on blood sugar, scientists recruited 13 adults with type 2 diabetes. Each person spent two separate 4.5-day periods in a controlled office setting, according to a press release.

DIABETES PREVENTION LINKED TO SPECIFIC TYPE OF EXERCISE, STUDY SHOWS

In one period, they worked in front of large windows with natural daylight streaming in. In the other period, participants worked in the same room with the windows covered and were exposed only to typical indoor lighting.

Daylight isn’t a replacement for medication or traditional management strategies like diet and exercise, the researchers noted.

Everyone ate similar meals, followed the same schedule and continued their usual diabetes medications in both conditions.

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While average blood sugar levels didn’t differ drastically between the two conditions, people spent more time in the healthy glucose range when they were exposed to natural daylight — their blood sugar fluctuated less and stayed within a desirable range for a greater portion of the day.

Participants who were exposed to daylight burned more fat and fewer carbohydrates, a metabolic pattern linked to better blood sugar regulation. (iStock)

Exposure to natural light also affected metabolism. In daylight, participants burned more fat and fewer carbohydrates for energy.

Muscle biopsies and laboratory tests further showed that the genes responsible for the body’s cellular clocks were more synchronized under natural light conditions, the study revealed.

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Better alignment of these genes can improve nutrient processing and how cells respond to insulin, the researchers concluded.

Sitting near windows or spending more time outdoors could support diabetes management alongside standard treatments, researchers say. (iStock)

However, daylight isn’t a replacement for medication or traditional management strategies like diet and exercise, according to the team.

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The study did have some limitations, including that the group of patients was small. The researchers cautioned that larger studies are needed to confirm these results and determine how much natural light exposure is optimal.

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“This study also highlights the often unnoticed impact of the built environment on our health, and raises further concerns about the prevalence of office environments with poor (natural) daylight access,” the researchers noted.

Khloe Quill is a lifestyle production assistant with Fox News Digital. She and the lifestyle team cover a range of story topics including food and drink, travel, and health.