Kourtney Kardashian has been slammed for posting a conspiracy theory claiming that face masks meant to curb the spread of COVID-19 can cause cancer.
The 41-year-old, who has over 102 million followers, shared a post on her Instagram stories on Saturday claiming that blue surgical face masks are ‘made of PTFE, a carcinogen made from synthetic fluoride.’
‘According to Cancer.Org it increases the risk of liver, testicle, pancreas, kidney & breast tumors + ulcerative colitis, thyroid disease, preeclampsia and high cholesterol. High exposure can cause influenza-like symptoms and hemorrhaging in the lungs, leading to suffocation.’
The post included an image of a typical blue disposable surgical mask, which are used by medical personnel across the globe, and now many citizens.
Kourtney captioned the post – which is not attributed to any particular study or research papers – with a wide-eyed emoji and a head-exploding emoji.
Social media users bashed the star pointing out she and the rest of the Kardashian clan had traveled to a tropical island for her sister Kim Kardashian’s birthday bash during the pandemic where they made staff wear masks.
Fake news: Kourtney Kardashian has been heavily criticized for sharing a conspiracy theory that face masks cause cancer
Health claims: The TV star shared the unfounded claims on her Instagram account on Saturday. Kourtney has over 102 million followers
There is currently no evidence to support the claims in Kourtney’s post and despite it citing the American Cancer Society, a member of the organization denounced the medical warning.
In a statement to the New York Post, Dr. William Cance, chief medical and scientific officer of the ACS, said: ‘There is no evidence to support the claim that the presence of PTFE in a mask causes cancer,
‘As a surgical oncologist, I, along with thousands of colleagues in the health-care profession, have been wearing masks for years to protect patients from the spread of infections,’ he added.
PTFE, also known as polytetrafluoroethylene is a man-made chemical which can be found on certain items like nonstick pans with Teflon coatings.
There is currently no evidence and nothing on the ACS website that suggests commonly-used masks cause cancer.
There is some research that PTFE in a compound can become harmful when it is on an object that is heated to at least 500 degrees Fahrenheit, releasing fumes.
Unacceptable: An NHS doctor from the UK, Dr Joshua Wolrich, didn’t hold back when he tweeted this over the weekend
Scary: One user commented on how concerning it was that a claim was being shared as truth
Do some research: Another Twitter user posted research that referred to the effects of PTFE burning at high temperatures
Privilege: Another person pointed out that Kourtney was fine with getting staff to wear masks on her recent island trip for Kim’s birthday
Spreading conspiracies: The health-conscious lifestyle guru appears to have taken things too far this time
The Twitter response to Kourtney’s misguided post ranged from disappointed to furious as people questioned why the mother-of-three would want to deter people from wearing face masks at such a crucial time.
An NHS doctor from the UK, Dr Joshua Wolrich, didn’t hold back when he tweeted over the weekend: ‘It’s one thing for a random people on social media to claim that masks cause cancer… it’s another for @kourtneykardash to be doing so on her Instagram stories to >100 million followers. UTTERLY F**KING UNACCEPTABLE.’
Another user @ZoeT chimed in, ‘The scariest thing to happen on Halloween this year is Kourtney Kardashian posting this utterly ridiculous post about blue masks with no medical evidence or proof, it’s just some random screenshot.
‘Medical professionals worldwide wear them but this screenshot means it’s true…’
‘I’d suggest she stick to life style blogging instead of playing pretend doctor’ came another comment.
Promo: Kourtney is pictured here wearing one of her sister Kim’s face masks from her SKIMS range
The Kardashian clan were highly criticized for traveling amid the coronavirus pandemic and using their privilege to fly to a private island on a Boeing 777 last month
Another Twitter user, @Kodeerants, posted ‘Hey @kourtneykardash, do some research before spreading misinformation to your millions of followers & also WEAR YOUR MASKS’
The Kardashian clan were highly criticized for traveling amid the coronavirus pandemic and using their privilege to fly to an island on a Boeing 777.
Upon arrival, they were handed keys to their own private villas on the beach.
TMZ claims Kim specifically picked out an island that hadn’t seen any cases of coronavirus since the pandemic began, and asked all of her guests to quarantine for two weeks before the trip and get multiple tests.
