RFK Jr.'s focus on vitamin A for measles worries health experts [View all]

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Source: Washington Post

RFK Jr.’s focus on vitamin A for measles worries health experts
The measles outbreak in Texas has sparked debate over the use of vitamin A, with some health experts warning it may not be effective.

March 4, 2025 at 6:00 a.m. EST


Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is seen last month at President Donald Trump’s first Cabinet meeting of his new term. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

By Lena H. Sun and Fenit Nirappil

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s focus on vitamin A use to combat a growing measles outbreak in Texas is raising concerns among public health experts, who fear he is sending the wrong message about preventing the highly contagious disease and distracting from the critical importance of vaccination. ... Kennedy, who in his years as an anti-vaccine activist criticized measles shots and boosted vitamin A as a treatment, is now using his government position to tout the vitamin’s accepted benefits. The Department of Health and Human Services has directed the nation’s top public health agency to add similar language to its guidance for caring for measles patients.

“It is also our responsibility to provide up-to-date guidance on available therapeutic medications. While there is no approved antiviral for those who may be infected, CDC has recently updated their recommendation supporting administration of vitamin A under the supervision of a physician for those with mild, moderate, and severe infection,” he wrote in an opinion piece that appeared on foxnews.com on Sunday night. “Studies have found that vitamin A can dramatically reduce measles mortality.” (1) ... His op-ed does not mention vitamin A’s risks.

Experts acknowledge that vitamin A can be beneficial after someone has gotten sick, but they say it is not a replacement for vaccination to prevent measles. Vitamin A is considered supportive care and typically used in countries where children are malnourished and have vitamin A deficiency. ... Anti-vaccine activists have long touted vitamin A as an alternative to immunization, concerning public health experts and doctors, who worry that Kennedy’s public statements will legitimize that view. ... “In fact, relying on vitamin A instead of the vaccine is not only dangerous and ineffective, but it puts children at serious risk,” Sue Kressly, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, said in a statement Monday. “Taking too much vitamin A can cause serious health problems, including liver damage.”

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Ben Edwards, a doctor in Lubbock who treats patients skeptical of modern medicine, said on a recent podcast episode that people will weather measles if they are good stewards of their immune system with nutrient-rich produce. He has expressed concerns about the side effects of measles vaccinations and said natural immunity is preferable, a view being cited by vaccine skeptics that is considered fringe by medical organizations. In an interview with The Washington Post, Edwards highlighted the studies showing a significant drop in measles deaths in malnourished children who take vitamin A. ... “That’s the kind of thing I want to educate my patients: ‘Hey, you’re not severely malnourished. You’ve got an immune system,’” Edwards said. “Now you need to be feeding it real food. You need to nourish it, steward it, get some sunshine, get some good oxygen.”

Caitlin Gilbert and Elana Gordon contributed to this report.

(1) https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/robert-f-kennedy-jr-measles-outbreak-call-action-all-us

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/03/04/measles-outbreak-vitamin-a-concerns/

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The story is at The Guardian too.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/04/rfk-jr-vitamins-measles-outbreak

RFK Jr sparks alarm after backing vitamins to treat measles amid outbreak
Health experts wary as US health secretary fails to endorse effective vaccines and instead calls them a ‘personal choice’

Jessica Glenza
Tue 4 Mar 2025 12.14 EST

Robert F Kennedy Jr, the US health secretary, has caused alarm among pediatricians, vaccine experts and lawmakers with an opinion piece that focuses on vitamin A and nutrition as treatments for measles. ... In response to a measles outbreak in Texas, which resulted in the first American measles death in nearly a decade, Kennedy wrote for Fox News about the benefits of “good nutrition” and vitamin A – but did not explicitly recommend highly effective vaccines.

“In fact, relying on vitamin A instead of the vaccine is not only dangerous and ineffective, but it puts children at serious risk,” Dr Sue Kressly, the president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, told the Washington Post.

Measles is one of the most infectious diseases in the world. Infections kill one to three people for every 1,000 infected and can cause severe brain swelling, called encephalitis, in one in 1,000 cases. The disease also causes general misery, including a characteristic top-down rash, fever, runny nose, and red and watery eyes. The measles vaccine is 97% effective at preventing the disease.

At least 146 people have been sickened in Texas, primarily in unvaccinated communities in the South Plains region. More than 20 people have been hospitalized, and an unvaccinated school-aged child died – the first American measles death since April 2015.

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