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A new investigation has found that Stephen Bartlett’s Diary of a CEO podcast has amplified harmful health misinformation.
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The BBC World Service investigation found that out of 15 episodes of the podcast that focused on health, each one contained an average of 14 harmful claims. According to experts, these claims go against extensive scientific evidence and could cause harm.
The investigation noted that several health claims were allowed with little to no challenge from Bartlett, despite their controversial nature. Experts told the BBC that by failing to question or criticize widely discredited theories undermines trust in conventional medicine.
Professor David Grimes from Trinity College, Dublin, told the BBC that while podcasters may claim they are sharing information, they are actually sharing harmful misinformation. “That’s a very different and not empowering thing,” he said. “It actually imperils all our health.”
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Diary of a CEO guest claims keto cures cancer
Bartlett is an investor and entrepreneur best known for his appearances on Dragon’s Den. He hosts Diary of a CEO, which was named one of the top five most listened-to podcasts globally by Spotify earlier this month. The show features a different guest each week.
In an October episode of Diary of a CEO, a professor claimed that cancer treatment can be helped by a ketogenic diet. He also compared modern treatments to “medieval cures.” The professor told the BBC he “stands by” the comments he made in the interview.
Other notable claims from recent episodes include the debunked theory that COVID-19 was an engineered weapon, as well as that polycystic ovarian syndrome and autism can be “reversed” with dietary changes.
Heidi Larson, an expert in public confidence in healthcare, told the BBC that many of the podcast’s guests are “way overstretching.” She added that this type of accessible but unscientific content “sends people away from evidence-based medicine. They stop doing things that might have some side effects, even though it could save their life.”
Speaking to Plant Based News (PBN), Dr Clare Day and Dr Daisy Lund, NHS GPs and co-hosts of the In A Nutshell Podcast said: “It’s understandable people want to pursue natural or dietary cures when faced with a diagnosis of cancer, but those recommending this approach should be sure of their evidence base before drawing vulnerable people away from tried and tested conventional cancer treatments.”
“As practising clinicians we feel there should be room to combine approaches in delivering the best outcome for an individual. Lifestyle medicine focuses on evidence-based interventions such as regular physical activity and plant-predominant nutrition alongside traditional clinical medicine.”
A spokesperson for Flight Studio, Bartlett’s podcast production company, told PBN: “The Diary Of A CEO (DOAC), is an open-minded, long-form conversation with world leaders, global experts, CEOs, athletes, authors, actors, and other individuals identified for their distinguished and eminent career and/or consequential life experience.
“Each guest episode is thoroughly researched prior to commission. DOAC offers guests freedom of expression and believes that progress, growth and learning comes from hearing a range of voices, not just those Steven and the DOAC team necessarily agree with.
“The BBC claims to have reviewed 15 specific episodes of nearly 400 published to date. For any reporting of DOAC to focus on less than four percent of episodes with an extremely limited proportion of guests – some of whom have featured on the BBC – to create a broader, and in our opinion, partial narrative is disappointing, misleading and frankly, disingenuous.”
