Social media is awash with false claims, including a fabricated CNN image, suggesting that a honey-based product can cure Alzheimer’s disease.
Products with names like Brain Honey, Mind Boost, Brain Vex, or Memopezil are being promoted by scammers as cures for Alzheimer’s or dementia, often falsely claiming endorsement from Bill Gates.
These claims also drag in the names of various celebrities, including Steve Martin, Samuel L. Jackson, Chris Hemsworth, and news anchor Savannah Guthrie, as supposed supporters of these products.
However, fact-checking website Snopes reported finding no evidence that Gates has created, endorsed, or sold products under these names. The ads use Gates’ name and image in a familiar scam tactic to lure people into purchasing unproven supplements.
The initial posts typically describe a “natural remedy” made from honey mixed with blueberries, cocoa, coffee, or other ingredients, before steering readers toward paid products.
One Facebook post claims, “A new discovery what’s needed to stop brain degeneration to Alzheimer’s disease. It is opposed by established medicine. Is it any good? Is this a scam? Well Bill Gates has funded the research.”
This post links to a fake article alleging Harvard’s endorsement of similar claims. It has garnered tens of thousands of positive comments, although the volume suggests they are likely fake. Other posts falsely use the ABC News logo.
Although there is minimal evidence suggesting honey might slightly enhance brain function due to its high polyphenol content, this has not been confirmed through clinical intervention studies.
These fake posts often follow a narrative implying that “the medical establishment doesn’t want you to know this,” despite any genuine breakthrough being widely publicized.
The alleged endorsement from Bill Gates is intended to exploit his genuine involvement in funding Alzheimer’s research, where he is believed to have personally pledged $100 million toward innovative dementia research.
Gates has expressed, “My dad died from Alzheimer’s, so my family knows first-hand how devastating it is to watch people you love struggle as the disease robs them of their mental capacity. In the United States, Alzheimer’s disease is the sixth most common cause of death—and yet as of today, there is no meaningful treatment for it.”
He also shared, “I’m hopeful that will change soon. There is a lot of amazing work being done in this field to delay Alzheimer’s and reduce its cognitive impact, and I’m lucky to support some of it.”
If you’re unsure about the authenticity of a celebrity endorsement, verify whether the content originates from an official account.
Examine images or videos for signs of forgery, such as inconsistent lighting or unnatural movements. The University of Buffalo’s DeepFake-O-Meter can also be used to evaluate the likelihood of authenticity by aggregating results from reliable AI media detection models across various formats.
