Amazon Deletes Books Promoting Autism Treatments and Vaccine Disinformation

March 13, 2019, 3:46 GMT

By Brandy Zadrozny

Amazon removes from its online market books on the "cure of autism" that unscientificly claim that children can be cured of autism by pseudoscientific methods such as ingestion and bathing in water of Potentially toxic bleach and the use of drugs to treat arsenic and lead poisoning.

Amazon confirmed Tuesday that the books "Cure the Known Symptoms of Autism" and "Fight Autism and Win" are no longer available, but declined to answer specific questions about why it was had deleted or if they were part of a larger cleaning effort, citing a policy of not commenting on individual accounts.

This Amazon initiative follows a report released Monday in Wired that criticized the retail giant for providing medically unsound books and dangerous methods for reversing spectrum disorder. autism. For years, news organizations have pointed to Amazon's practice of organizing books promoting vaccines and other misinformation about health, but the pressure has intensified in recent weeks.

Online platforms have responded to the increased scrutiny by legislators and public health advocates of the misinformation on health hosted on their websites. Last week, Facebook announced that it would "eliminate" erroneous information about shared vaccines on its platform and reject any advertising spreading "hoaxes of vaccines". Pinterest chose to block all vaccine-related search results and YouTube advertising turned off on anti-vaccination videos last month. In February, Amazon removed anti-vaccination documentaries from its Prime Video service.

Autism is a developmental disorder that occurs in young children and for which there is no cure. Children with autism spectrum disorders have a wide range of characteristics, ranging from difficulty interacting with peers or building relationships to total inability to function at school or at home. at work.

As of Monday, "Cure Symptoms Known as Autism" has sold for $ 28 and has 631 reviews and an average rating of 3.5 stars. The book touted the healing power of chlorine dioxide, a form of bleach called "miracle mineral solution" by adherents. The author of the book, Kerri Rivera, who lives in Mexico, says that 191 children have been cured of autism with a chemical treatment the Food and Drug Administration warned may cause "severe nausea, vomiting and low life threatening blood pressure due to dehydration.

The other title deleted, "Fight Autism and Win," advises parents on chelation – an unproven treatment for autism that involves giving a child a drug with an antidote for mercury poisoning. The remedy stems from the debunked theory that autism is caused by mercury exposure in childhood vaccines. According to the Mayo Clinic, chelation therapy can lead to serious side effects, including life-threatening kidney damage. At the time of its withdrawal, "Fight Autism and Win" was selling for $ 25, posted a rating of 4.8 stars and 54 customer reviews.

The withdrawal of the books was first announced Tuesday by Larry Cook, an anti-vaccine campaigner, in a newsletter for subscribers. Cook's Facebook ads – targeted at pregnant women in measles-affected states – have recently been banned as part of the platform's misinformation campaign.

Cook has attached an image that, he says, had been sent by Amazon, explaining why the company had removed the title from its store.

"During our review process, we found that the subject of your book violated our content guidelines," says Cook's screenshot. "As a result, we can not offer this book for sale."

Cook also takes advantage of its Amazon showcase to promote anti-vaccine content and earns a commission on books purchased on his recommendation.

"This title of Kerri Rivera is on Amazon for SIX YEARS, and today Amazon has removed it," Cook continued in his newsletter. "My friends, seriously, stock up on books and DVDs now, while you can!"