Poison center reports rose 39% for a common supplement after it was incorrectly touted as a measles cure

Just because you can grab it off a drugstore shelf doesn’t mean it’s harmless.As the US confronted a major resurgence of measles last year, poison control centers reported a sharp spike in calls involving children exposed to a widely available supplement.Around the same time, new research shows internet searches surged for whether that same vitamin could be used as an alternative treatment for the potentially deadly disease.That spike in attention came after several prominent figures — including Health Secretary Robert F.Kennedy Jr.

and podcaster Joe Rogan — discussed the nutrient as a possible tool in fighting the virus.In the new study, researchers at Boston Children’s Hospital examined Google search trends for “vitamin A and measles” and “cod liver and measles” from January through June 2025.They then compared those trends with government media communications and public comments from influential figures who promoted the supplements as unproven treatments during measles outbreaks in West Texas and other parts of the country.They found search interest in vitamin A stayed relatively steady until Feb.

25, 2025, when it jumped 44% the next day and ultimately peaked at 100% by March 22.That surge closely followed a series of public statements beginning Feb.19 that promoted vitamin A as a potential measles treatment.Interest in cod liver oil and measles followed a similar pattern, peaking on March 5 at 52.6% relative search volume.Overall, after those public statements, searches for vitamin A ran 7.5 percentage points higher than projected, while cod liver oil searches were 1.3 percentage points above expectations.The researchers emphasized they could not determine whether the spike in searches translated into actual use of vitamin A or cod liver oil.However, data from America’s Poison Centers recorded 86 pediatric vitamin A exposures nationwide between Jan.

1 and March 31, 2025 — a 38.7% increase over the same period in 2024.“Our findings und...