US authorities falsely reference non-existent studies in their defense
Washington - Feeling the heat over suspected fabrications in a recent report on children's health issued by the White House, investigative journalists have uncovered several misrepresentations in the "Make Our Children Healthy Again" (MAHA) report. The study, published by the Make America Healthy Again Commission, listed a number of questionable sources, including non-existent studies and misattributed authors.
Among the disputed sources, the nominal first author of a study on youth anxiety, Katherine Keyes, reportedly stated that the cited study was not one she or her colleagues were involved in. The study does not appear in the table of contents of the Jama Pediatrics journal, either. Similarly, Virginia Commonwealth University confirmed that one of the supposedly cited authors, Robert L. Findling, did not conduct a study on advertising psychoactive substances to youth as claimed in the report.
Another questionable entry is an untraceable researcher named "Shah, M.B.," listed as the first author of a study on ADHD medication. There is no evidence indicating that this individual is a prominent researcher in the field, or that their work was ever published.
According to Margaret Manto, one of the reporters responsible for the investigation, around 20 other sources had their content taken out of context or results misrepresented. The New York Times also joined in the investigation and found further inconsistencies.
When confronted about the allegations, the White House dismissed them as mere citation and formatting errors. However, the Health and Human Services Department later published an updated version of the report, removing the seven references to non-existent sources. Nonetheless, Manto asserted that these were not just formatting errors, but serious flaws that would not pass a peer-review.
The peer-review process, common in academic research, helps to ensure the validity of scientific findings by having independent scientists evaluate the studies before they are published in academic journals.
If these findings are unfounded, the credibility of the report and any resulting policy decisions could be compromised. To maintain the integrity of the report and the resulting policies, all sources should be thoroughly vetted and verified.
The MAHA report, published by the Make America Healthy Again Commission, has been questioned due to its misrepresentation of medical-conditions studies, such as the one on youth anxiety attributed to Katherine Keyes. The White House, when confronted about these allegations, dismissed them as mere citation and formatting errors, but a thorough investigation revealed other inconsistencies, such as the study by Robert L. Findling on advertising psychoactive substances to youth. Moreover, the peer-review process, an integral part of health-and-wellness and science, is crucial in ensuring the validity of scientific findings to maintain the integrity of reports and subsequent policy decisions, and these findings raise concerns about the credibility of the MAHA report.
