As measles spreads across West Texas, some parents in Lubbock are swapping proven vaccines for strawberry-flavored cod liver oil because Robert F. Kennedy Jr. once said vitamin A was the move. Doctors like Dr. Ana Montanez are left playing whack-a-mole with misinformation, trying to convince people that no, your “God-given immune system” plus fish juice isn’t going to stop one of the most contagious viruses on Earth.
Vitamin A has limited use in malnourished kids in developing countries, but here in Lubbock, it’s just another way to make pharmacists roll their eyes. Pediatricians are spending more time debunking Kennedy-era Facebook memes than actually practicing medicine, while parents nervously weigh whether measles or missing 21 days of school is worse. Spoiler: it’s measles.
One Lubbock mom—self-described Kennedy fan—said she prayed about vaccines with her husband and decided to “hold off” while dosing her kids with cod liver oil. Meanwhile, a child in Lubbock already died from measles last month. Doctors say vaccines have six decades of proof behind them. Kennedy stans say “trust the vibes.”
Who needs science when you’ve got cod liver oil and Facebook prophets? Welcome to healthcare, Lubbock-style.
