When with @icij.org, I combined the worlds of Drag Race with illicit financial flows

With @theexamination.org, I'll do the same for our focus on how firms + governments make us sick

Excited to see @willreport.bsky.social's latest on how "science" helps push the idea maple syrup can prevent disease

Together with my @theexamination.org colleagues @anjalit.bsky.social & @mago.bsky.social and Ellen Gabler of the New York Times, we looked into this weird, sticky mix of science and salesmanship. Here's the story: www.theexamination.org/articles/a-s...

After, Seeram told me he was fulfilling a U.S. government grant to promote maple syrup -- and that he believed in the power of natural medicines.

We later found out he was also a longtime paid consultant of the Canadian maple syrup industry.

Biomedical researcher Navindra Seeram had done dozens of maple studies and had suggested that maple syrup may help stave off diseases. But I was still surprised by what he said:

“We have to convince the consumer that this sugar is good for you,” he told an audience of maple farmers.

I went to a maple syrup conference last fall to hear a scientist who calls himself "the world’s leading researcher on maple health benefits." You could tell where to go by this giant inflatable syrup bottle outside the hotel…

This Safeway warehouse had an injury rate *5 times* the industry average - the highest of any large warehouse in 2022. Great story by @faridajhabvala.bsky.social

Follow our investigative reporting on health crises that threaten the lives of millions go.bsky.app/KyC5ksb

Interested in public health journalism with spicy accountability sauce?

Here's starter pack from my colleague, ace tobacco reporter Matthew Chapman 👇