Health Nerd
@gidmk.bsky.social
Epidemiologist. Research Fellow. Doctor of Spreadsheets. Writer (Slate, TIME, Guardian, etc). PhD, MPH. Host of senscipod Email gidmk.healthnerd@gmail.com he/him. Find my writing on Substack and Medium.
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Health Nerd
@gidmk.bsky.social
· Dec 1
There's No Such Thing As A Vitamin D Deficiency - Part One
The complex science about vitamin D levels and what they mean
gidmk.substack.com
My new piece looks at the science about low vitamin D levels and why the US Endocrine Society no longer uses the term "deficiency" at all.
gidmk.substack.com/p/theres-no-...
gidmk.substack.com/p/theres-no-...
Great piece by @bethskw.bsky.social on that new study showing that diet soft drinks are possibly healthier than water:
au.lifehacker.com/fitness/1173...
au.lifehacker.com/fitness/1173...
A Study Found Diet Coke Is Better for You Than Water (Sort Of)
I won’t say it’s “healthier,” but it certainly doesn’t seem to be any worse.
au.lifehacker.com
January 22, 2026 at 11:16 PM
Great piece by @bethskw.bsky.social on that new study showing that diet soft drinks are possibly healthier than water:
au.lifehacker.com/fitness/1173...
au.lifehacker.com/fitness/1173...
Reposted by Health Nerd
Morgan's interview with me was my fave one! She really got the heart of so many of my book's points. If you missed it, check it out....
I interviewed @starrevartan.bsky.social about women's bodies and her book THE STRONGER SEX, for @jezebeldotcom.bsky.social: www.jezebel.com/womens-bodie...
Women’s Bodies May Actually Be Inherently Stronger—But Science Is Only Just Figuring It Out
The Stronger Sex, a new book by Starre Vartan, paints a picture of the female body as strong, capable, and gifted in ways that post-industrial societies have ignored.
www.jezebel.com
January 21, 2026 at 2:28 AM
Morgan's interview with me was my fave one! She really got the heart of so many of my book's points. If you missed it, check it out....
COVID-19 has never been less of a problem than it is today.
A piece inspired by @michaelsfuhrer.bsky.social
open.substack.com/pub/gidmk/p/...
A piece inspired by @michaelsfuhrer.bsky.social
open.substack.com/pub/gidmk/p/...
COVID-19 Has Never Been Less Of A Problem Than It Is Today
Some good news for the start of the year.
open.substack.com
January 21, 2026 at 1:49 AM
COVID-19 has never been less of a problem than it is today.
A piece inspired by @michaelsfuhrer.bsky.social
open.substack.com/pub/gidmk/p/...
A piece inspired by @michaelsfuhrer.bsky.social
open.substack.com/pub/gidmk/p/...
Reposted by Health Nerd
We are increasingly exposed to surveillance and algorithmic classification but with little appreciation for the risk false positives and the costs of those errors.
New from 404 Media: ICE's facial recognition app, which the agency is using to decide who to detain and deport, misidentified a woman. Twice.
ICE says results of the app are definitive and override a birth certificate; obviously this case shows the app is inaccurate
www.404media.co/ices-facial-...
ICE says results of the app are definitive and override a birth certificate; obviously this case shows the app is inaccurate
www.404media.co/ices-facial-...
ICE’s Facial Recognition App Misidentified a Woman. Twice
In testimony from a CBP official obtained by 404 Media, the official described how Mobile Fortify returned two different names after scanning a woman's face during an immigration raid. ICE has said th...
www.404media.co
January 19, 2026 at 2:58 PM
We are increasingly exposed to surveillance and algorithmic classification but with little appreciation for the risk false positives and the costs of those errors.
Whichever editor chose the journalist to cover the new Sydney Fish markets is lowkey a genius.
January 17, 2026 at 4:31 AM
Whichever editor chose the journalist to cover the new Sydney Fish markets is lowkey a genius.
This is, of course, why all good mothers fly their own planes when travelling.
HHS Secretary RFK Jr: "This idea that you should trust the experts, a good mother doesn't do that"
January 16, 2026 at 9:51 AM
This is, of course, why all good mothers fly their own planes when travelling.
Reposted by Health Nerd
A few updates on the deeply unethical study to probe "non-specific" effects of the birth dose HepB vaccine in Guinea-Bissau by Danish investigators.
1️⃣ The study was canceled as per AfricaCDC - HHS disputes this.
2️⃣ Full protocol was leaked and it's bad.
Quick 🧵
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
1️⃣ The study was canceled as per AfricaCDC - HHS disputes this.
2️⃣ Full protocol was leaked and it's bad.
Quick 🧵
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
Controversial US study on hepatitis B vaccines in Africa is cancelled
$1.6m project drew outrage over ethical questions about withholding vaccines proven to prevent disease
www.theguardian.com
January 15, 2026 at 8:16 PM
A few updates on the deeply unethical study to probe "non-specific" effects of the birth dose HepB vaccine in Guinea-Bissau by Danish investigators.
1️⃣ The study was canceled as per AfricaCDC - HHS disputes this.
2️⃣ Full protocol was leaked and it's bad.
Quick 🧵
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
1️⃣ The study was canceled as per AfricaCDC - HHS disputes this.
2️⃣ Full protocol was leaked and it's bad.
Quick 🧵
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
Reposted by Health Nerd
⚠️ I think there's been far too little attention paid to what RFK Jr's overarching plan is:
End science-based, evidence-based approaches to reducing illness, suffering, & death (e.g., vaccination, fluoridation of water) and replace them with bogus, unproven, kooky approaches (beef tallow, chelation)
End science-based, evidence-based approaches to reducing illness, suffering, & death (e.g., vaccination, fluoridation of water) and replace them with bogus, unproven, kooky approaches (beef tallow, chelation)
FDA deletes warning on bogus autism therapies touted by RFK Jr.‘s allies
"The agency used to warn of chelation, used by RFK Jr.’s anti-vaccine ally David Geier."
"The agency used to warn of chelation, used by RFK Jr.’s anti-vaccine ally David Geier."
FDA deletes warning on bogus autism therapies touted by RFK Jr.‘s allies
The agency used to warn of chelation, used by RFK Jr.'s anti-vaccine ally David Geier.
arstechnica.com
January 14, 2026 at 1:27 PM
⚠️ I think there's been far too little attention paid to what RFK Jr's overarching plan is:
End science-based, evidence-based approaches to reducing illness, suffering, & death (e.g., vaccination, fluoridation of water) and replace them with bogus, unproven, kooky approaches (beef tallow, chelation)
End science-based, evidence-based approaches to reducing illness, suffering, & death (e.g., vaccination, fluoridation of water) and replace them with bogus, unproven, kooky approaches (beef tallow, chelation)
Reposted by Health Nerd
🧪 The "high-profile study" in question here is one *the Guardian reported on* just under a year ago with a "shocking" headline. That story includes sections of the study copy-pasted and additional quotes from the UK science media centre that lacked their full context about why the study was flawed.
‘A bombshell’: doubt cast on discoveries of #microplastics throughout human body, from brain to blood, arteries to testes
Exclusive: Some scientists say many detections are most likely error, with one high-profile study called a ‘joke’
Story by me
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Exclusive: Some scientists say many detections are most likely error, with one high-profile study called a ‘joke’
Story by me
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘A bombshell’: doubt cast on discovery of microplastics throughout human body
Exclusive: Some scientists say many detections are most likely error, with one high-profile study called a ‘joke’
www.theguardian.com
January 14, 2026 at 9:54 AM
🧪 The "high-profile study" in question here is one *the Guardian reported on* just under a year ago with a "shocking" headline. That story includes sections of the study copy-pasted and additional quotes from the UK science media centre that lacked their full context about why the study was flawed.
Long and useful thread showing why the people constantly saying that the pandemic never declined based on waste water data are wrong.
COVID-19, since it emerged, has never been less of a problem than it is today.
COVID-19, since it emerged, has never been less of a problem than it is today.
I’ve written quite a bit about accounts like @michael-hoerger.bsky.social & @jpweiland.bsky.social who purport to divine the prevalence of covid from wastewater.
Why?
I think they’re selling an unscientific answer to a question science can't answer yet: How is the pandemic changing over time?
1/
Why?
I think they’re selling an unscientific answer to a question science can't answer yet: How is the pandemic changing over time?
1/
January 14, 2026 at 3:49 AM
Long and useful thread showing why the people constantly saying that the pandemic never declined based on waste water data are wrong.
COVID-19, since it emerged, has never been less of a problem than it is today.
COVID-19, since it emerged, has never been less of a problem than it is today.
Fascinating piece about how the fear of microplastics is almost certainly overblown.
One takeaway for me is that even the scientists behind the microplastics=bad papers are VERY reserved about whether these findings are really problematic.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
One takeaway for me is that even the scientists behind the microplastics=bad papers are VERY reserved about whether these findings are really problematic.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘A bombshell’: doubt cast on discovery of microplastics throughout human body
Exclusive: Some scientists say many detections are most likely error, with one high-profile study called a ‘joke’
www.theguardian.com
January 14, 2026 at 1:51 AM
Fascinating piece about how the fear of microplastics is almost certainly overblown.
One takeaway for me is that even the scientists behind the microplastics=bad papers are VERY reserved about whether these findings are really problematic.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
One takeaway for me is that even the scientists behind the microplastics=bad papers are VERY reserved about whether these findings are really problematic.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
My first piece of the year looks at artificial sweeteners and why they may be...healthier than water??
Thanks to @tamarhaspel.bsky.social for the inspiration!
gidmk.substack.com/p/diet-coke-...
Thanks to @tamarhaspel.bsky.social for the inspiration!
gidmk.substack.com/p/diet-coke-...
Diet Coke Is Healthier Than...Water???
A surprising but quite robust finding
gidmk.substack.com
January 14, 2026 at 12:08 AM
My first piece of the year looks at artificial sweeteners and why they may be...healthier than water??
Thanks to @tamarhaspel.bsky.social for the inspiration!
gidmk.substack.com/p/diet-coke-...
Thanks to @tamarhaspel.bsky.social for the inspiration!
gidmk.substack.com/p/diet-coke-...
Nothing like a newborn snuggle in the morning 💖
January 13, 2026 at 1:56 AM
Nothing like a newborn snuggle in the morning 💖
Reposted by Health Nerd
I'm shocked that Michael Shermer thinks that women should just stay home and keep their mouths shut.
![Allegations of sexual assault and harassment
Shermer was accused of sexual harassment by two women.[81] Shermer has denied these allegations.[81][82] In 2019, Illinois Wesleyan University canceled Shermer's visit for the President's Convocation at that institution after it learned of the sexual assault allegations.[83]
Writing for The Guardian in 2020 in a review of his book, Fara Dabhoiwala stated that several of Shermer's public speaking engagements had been canceled as a result of these allegations[84] Undark Magazine reported that the allegations against Shermer began to emerge in 2013 and 2014.[81] Shermer had sent cease and desist letters to the student-run newspaper of Santa Barbara City College and accused the editor of defamation in an email to the college.[81][85]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:tbqqvyv6pjjww44glrmycaxl/bafkreib5aq7admtingb7wqwmkawwuhzsw7oiess6gnueunpihm5wifkbb4@jpeg)
January 10, 2026 at 8:20 AM
I'm shocked that Michael Shermer thinks that women should just stay home and keep their mouths shut.
Thoughts about Peppa Pig:
1. Why do they all have human teeth?
2. The zoo in this world is a dystopian nightmare.
3. George is nowhere near meeting the AAP recommendations of 200-300 words at 24 months and therefore probably has a speech delay.
4. Mummy and Daddy Pig seem to be on lithium.
1. Why do they all have human teeth?
2. The zoo in this world is a dystopian nightmare.
3. George is nowhere near meeting the AAP recommendations of 200-300 words at 24 months and therefore probably has a speech delay.
4. Mummy and Daddy Pig seem to be on lithium.
January 9, 2026 at 1:37 AM
Thoughts about Peppa Pig:
1. Why do they all have human teeth?
2. The zoo in this world is a dystopian nightmare.
3. George is nowhere near meeting the AAP recommendations of 200-300 words at 24 months and therefore probably has a speech delay.
4. Mummy and Daddy Pig seem to be on lithium.
1. Why do they all have human teeth?
2. The zoo in this world is a dystopian nightmare.
3. George is nowhere near meeting the AAP recommendations of 200-300 words at 24 months and therefore probably has a speech delay.
4. Mummy and Daddy Pig seem to be on lithium.
Yes, fully agree with Ed. There is not now, nor has there ever been, convincing evidence that COVID-19 causes additional immune impacts beyond the acute period that make you more susceptible to future infections.
I have no interest in trying to dunk on anyone but there is absolutely no evidence for this at all.
SARS-CoV-2 has not been demonstrated to make you more susceptible to other infections by impairing the function of your immune system.
SARS-CoV-2 has not been demonstrated to make you more susceptible to other infections by impairing the function of your immune system.
January 7, 2026 at 9:21 PM
Yes, fully agree with Ed. There is not now, nor has there ever been, convincing evidence that COVID-19 causes additional immune impacts beyond the acute period that make you more susceptible to future infections.
Reposted by Health Nerd
Yup, once again, @dereklowe.bsky.social in @science.org nails it:
“Marty Makary, our head of the FDA, believes that Lyme disease is an escaped biowarfare agent. Jay Bhattacharya, among other things, believes that he is fit to lead the NIH. We are being governed by grinning idiots and sociopaths”
“Marty Makary, our head of the FDA, believes that Lyme disease is an escaped biowarfare agent. Jay Bhattacharya, among other things, believes that he is fit to lead the NIH. We are being governed by grinning idiots and sociopaths”
over the years I've come to know & appreciate @dereklowe.bsky.social through his column @science.org
I always enjoyed his way of describing science in ways both familiar and not
it is a strange experience to shift towards nodding vigorously with newfound existential concerns on a daily basis
I always enjoyed his way of describing science in ways both familiar and not
it is a strange experience to shift towards nodding vigorously with newfound existential concerns on a daily basis
Source: www.science.org/content/blog...
January 3, 2026 at 11:11 PM
Yup, once again, @dereklowe.bsky.social in @science.org nails it:
“Marty Makary, our head of the FDA, believes that Lyme disease is an escaped biowarfare agent. Jay Bhattacharya, among other things, believes that he is fit to lead the NIH. We are being governed by grinning idiots and sociopaths”
“Marty Makary, our head of the FDA, believes that Lyme disease is an escaped biowarfare agent. Jay Bhattacharya, among other things, believes that he is fit to lead the NIH. We are being governed by grinning idiots and sociopaths”
Newborn product marketing: This is the safest product ever, Your baby will love it.
Newborn product disclaimer tags: BABIES HAVE DIED USING THIS PRODUCT.
Newborn product disclaimer tags: BABIES HAVE DIED USING THIS PRODUCT.
January 3, 2026 at 10:26 AM
Newborn product marketing: This is the safest product ever, Your baby will love it.
Newborn product disclaimer tags: BABIES HAVE DIED USING THIS PRODUCT.
Newborn product disclaimer tags: BABIES HAVE DIED USING THIS PRODUCT.
Reposted by Health Nerd
Neither grok nor x apologized in any official statement. The screenshotted “apology from grok” was created by a user who prompted it to issue an apology for creating a specific CSAM image of girls who were 12-14 years old (by grok’s estimation). He prompted grok multiple times to get this “apology.”
LLMs are 100% - yes, 100% - the results of their programmer's intentions.
Yes, there are some unexpected outputs. But if you'd chatbot creates sexual images of young children, either the programmers don't care or THEY EXPLICITLY WANTED IT TO DO THAT.
Yes, there are some unexpected outputs. But if you'd chatbot creates sexual images of young children, either the programmers don't care or THEY EXPLICITLY WANTED IT TO DO THAT.
1. Headlines everywhere today read "Grok apologizes."
This is bullshit. A chatbot is not something that can apologize.
Pretending otherwise is simple laundering these companies' bullshit about what AI is, while diffusing blame away from the human beings that developed and released this system.
This is bullshit. A chatbot is not something that can apologize.
Pretending otherwise is simple laundering these companies' bullshit about what AI is, while diffusing blame away from the human beings that developed and released this system.
January 3, 2026 at 1:30 AM
Neither grok nor x apologized in any official statement. The screenshotted “apology from grok” was created by a user who prompted it to issue an apology for creating a specific CSAM image of girls who were 12-14 years old (by grok’s estimation). He prompted grok multiple times to get this “apology.”
LLMs are 100% - yes, 100% - the results of their programmer's intentions.
Yes, there are some unexpected outputs. But if you'd chatbot creates sexual images of young children, either the programmers don't care or THEY EXPLICITLY WANTED IT TO DO THAT.
Yes, there are some unexpected outputs. But if you'd chatbot creates sexual images of young children, either the programmers don't care or THEY EXPLICITLY WANTED IT TO DO THAT.
1. Headlines everywhere today read "Grok apologizes."
This is bullshit. A chatbot is not something that can apologize.
Pretending otherwise is simple laundering these companies' bullshit about what AI is, while diffusing blame away from the human beings that developed and released this system.
This is bullshit. A chatbot is not something that can apologize.
Pretending otherwise is simple laundering these companies' bullshit about what AI is, while diffusing blame away from the human beings that developed and released this system.
January 3, 2026 at 12:41 AM
LLMs are 100% - yes, 100% - the results of their programmer's intentions.
Yes, there are some unexpected outputs. But if you'd chatbot creates sexual images of young children, either the programmers don't care or THEY EXPLICITLY WANTED IT TO DO THAT.
Yes, there are some unexpected outputs. But if you'd chatbot creates sexual images of young children, either the programmers don't care or THEY EXPLICITLY WANTED IT TO DO THAT.
Reposted by Health Nerd
Good read as usual from @gidmk.bsky.social , www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Australia’s gun laws have long been the envy of the world. They must remain so, especially after Bondi | Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz
As a public health expert and Jewish Australian, I urge our leaders to ensure gun legislation matches the world we live in
www.theguardian.com
December 31, 2025 at 3:04 AM
Good read as usual from @gidmk.bsky.social , www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Reposted by Health Nerd
Every week, Nature publishes yet another breathless puff piece about some AI startup, based only unpublished claims from the company and interviewing only those who work there.
How can the leading scientific journal publish piece after piece that would make Kevin Roose blush?
I think it's that...
How can the leading scientific journal publish piece after piece that would make Kevin Roose blush?
I think it's that...
December 30, 2025 at 10:08 PM
Every week, Nature publishes yet another breathless puff piece about some AI startup, based only unpublished claims from the company and interviewing only those who work there.
How can the leading scientific journal publish piece after piece that would make Kevin Roose blush?
I think it's that...
How can the leading scientific journal publish piece after piece that would make Kevin Roose blush?
I think it's that...
Baby number 2! Gotta love the newborn snuggles.
December 29, 2025 at 11:30 PM
Baby number 2! Gotta love the newborn snuggles.
Journal invitations to peer review over the last 2 weeks of the year: Hi! Wanna do some free work?
My out of office:
My out of office:
a man is laying on a couch wearing a blue shirt and making a funny face .
ALT: a man is laying on a couch wearing a blue shirt and making a funny face .
media.tenor.com
December 27, 2025 at 11:11 PM
Journal invitations to peer review over the last 2 weeks of the year: Hi! Wanna do some free work?
My out of office:
My out of office:
Reposted by Health Nerd
I wouldn't describe Jay as "man in the middle" unless I were making sort of human centipede analogy.
December 23, 2025 at 5:44 AM
I wouldn't describe Jay as "man in the middle" unless I were making sort of human centipede analogy.