NHS staff battling wave of food supplement disinformation

Misinformation about dietary supplements has become routine in NHS clinics, with 40% of frontline workers reporting claims weekly. A YouGov poll for World Cancer Research Fund found 53% among nurses and midwives encounter such misinformation. The study, of 795 workers, precedes Cancer Prevention Action Week and highlights consultation time strain.

The charity warns that unproven vitamins can be unsafe, citing turmeric-related liver injury and St John's wort interactions, plus diverse magnesium types that can cause diarrhoea. Greenberg warns that social media spreads distorted, out-of-context advice that pulls people from evidence-based changes and wastes NHS time; the three-year campaign will highlight these misinformation risks.