Claim: Former adviser of the National Task Force against COVID-19 and Manila Doctors Hospital internist-cardiologist Dr. Anthony Leachon promotes a solution of water and salt that can cure hypertension within 24 hours.
Rating: FALSE
Why we fact-checked this: The Facebook video posted on August 24, 2024, has over 2,500 reactions, 150 comments, and 363,000 views as of writing.
What the post says: The post shows an alleged video clip of Leachon saying the claim. The claim is also mentioned in the post’s caption.
A text can be seen superimposed at the top of the video saying the line, “Gamitin lang ang 1 baso ng maalat na tubig upang bukas magising na may stable na presyon hanggang 120/80,” (Use one glass of salt with water and you’ll have a stable blood pressure of up to 120/80 by tomorrow).
Facts: Leachon told Rappler through a Viber message that the post is a “fake ad.”
The audio of the video clip where Leachon allegedly made the claim was manipulated. The clip was taken from a Facebook Live posted on Leachon’s official Facebook page on July 29, 2024.
In the Facebook Live, Leachon talked about the risks of doing mukbangs or videos showing people eating large amounts of food after Mindanao-based vlogger Dongz Apatan died after a stroke on June 13, 2024. (READ: Mukbang no more? DOH considers banning ‘mukbang’ after death of vlogger)
At no point in the Facebook Live did Leachon mention the claim.
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Previous fact-checks: Rappler debunked a similar post about the same hypertension cure on August 19, 2024. The post showed a manipulated clip of Leachon and ABS-CBN News Channel (ANC) host Karen Davila that used artificial intelligence to make it seem that their interview was about the claim.
“I’m trying to inform my followers and other patients about this anomaly but it seems that we need to do something drastic with the media’s help,” Leachon said in a Viber message to Rappler on Monday, August 19.
In recent months, Rappler has noticed a surge in the number of AI-manipulated videos to promote health products. – Lorenz Pasion/Rappler.com
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