Injecting doubt: responding to the naturopathic anti-vaccination rhetoric

Abstract

There is growing controversy about vaccination rates in Canada. A significant percentage of the population is uncertain about the science of vaccines, and in some areas ‘herd immunity’ is being threatened. Hesitancy to vaccinate is a complex phenomenon, but there is little doubt that complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) providers have played a role. In this study, our first objective was to examine websites of naturopathic clinics and practitioners in the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta, looking for (1) the presence of discourse that may contribute to vaccine hesitancy, and (2) recommendations for ‘alternatives’ to vaccines or flu shots. Of the 330 naturopath websites we analysed, 40 included vaccine hesitancy discourse and 26 offered vaccine or flu shot alternatives. Using these data, we explored the potential impact such statements could have on the phenomenon of vaccine hesitancy. Our second objective was to consider these misrepresentations in the context of Canadian law and policy, and to outline various legal methods of addressing them. We concluded that tightening advertising law, reducing CAM practitioners’ ability to self-regulate, and improving enforcement of existing common and criminal law standards would help limit naturopaths’ ability to spread inaccurate and science-free anti-vaccination and vaccine-hesitant perspectives.

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