Original English article published in the American Journal of Public Health: https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2020.305905
[Extract] Falsehoods have been shown to spread faster and farther than accurate information, and research suggests that misinformation can have negative effects in the real world, such as amplifying controversy about vaccines and propagating unproven cancer treatments. Health misinformation on social media, therefore, urgently requires greater action from those working in public health research and practice. We define “health misinformation” as any health-related claim of fact that is false based on current scientific consensus. Many other types of information pose a challenge for health communication, including contradictory or conflicting findings, changing evidence, and information that involves a high degree of uncertainty; however, these issues are outside the scope of this editorial, which focuses on information that is patently false. [...]