13 Comments
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dr_cois's avatar

It's pretty frustrating to see. These folks are not accountable. If I were to do that as an EM physician when advising my patients, I would lose my license. At the same time, a feature of grifters is to cast doubt on the intentions and abilities of actual healthcare providers.

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Brady Holmer's avatar

Well for people like him, the only people they’re accountable to are themselves (and their sponsors who also couldn’t care less, apparently, about the credibility of whom they’re affiliated with).

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Crispyb's avatar

A lay person like myself would say I trust an EM physician in his specialty, but not when it comes to health. I used to have coffee at a starbucks near a hospital. The most unhealthy people came in wearing scrubs. Again, my eyes and many others can see the results of ones health beliefs. We need people who are good at what they do, but they need to stay in their lane.

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Lauren Axelrod's avatar

While I do my own research, which comes from multiple sources I’d never think to question someone’s references. Wow! Thanks for educating us.

This says it all to me:

https://www.morningstar.com/news/pr-newswire/20250318la43450/cardone-ventures-10x-health-ventures-file-two-additional-lawsuits-in-florida-and-delaware-state-courts-against-gary-brecka-sage-workinger-and-their-affiliated-companies

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Rabbi Shmuel Chaim Naiman's avatar

Never heard of the guy, but your point is so important and well presented. Thank you!

I love the term you used to describe yourself as a "micro health influencer." That resonates with me: I'm not either reaching the 6 or 7 digits of followers, probably not even 5 digits. But the few thousand people who've come across my writing require me to post responsibly.

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Devin Teichrow's avatar

Brecka and the like need more people calling out their dishonesty. Great work.

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Fran Kilinski's avatar

Genuinely 👏 applauding you for using your platform for this. I’ve written similarly about guys like this, often who have fewer credentials than Gary but spend thousands on ads for social proof. It’s scary. Thank you for not being afraid to call the bullshit out, Brady!

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oldmarathonrunner's avatar

It has always been the same. After all where does "snake oil" have it's origin.

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Reis's avatar

Brekka is regular spewing pseudo science. It goes well beyond AI written articles. He does it all the time on his podcast. Just because the dude has lots of followers doesn’t mean he knows what he is talking about. I appreciate this article. We need more people calling this behavior out. ✊

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Steven Bubel MS, CSCS's avatar

I find myself, more and more these days, having to debunk claims that my clients find on Instagram, YouTube, etc.

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Brady Holmer's avatar

We’re in an age of information abundance. It’s a double-edged sword.

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Ellen Britt, PA, Ed.D.'s avatar

Agree that AI is notorious for coming up with the right info and then citing a completely hallucinatory reference.

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Crispyb's avatar

I listen to Brecka and have friends who have had great results following his suggestions. If you genuinely don't understand why people listen to and trust him, it is because people try things and when they get results they continuing trying it. Then someone comes along and says "he quotes wrong papers" Someone who has benefited from his advice doesn't think his advice is wrong, they start to realize scientists cannot be trusted to properly interpret the data they receive. Its the classic, tell people, don't trust your lying eyes.

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