Parents Rely On Misinformation From Celebrities

Filed in archive News on November 28, 2011

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About 24 percent of parents surveyed said they trust what celebrities say about vaccines.

"Celebrities have no expertise in childhood immunizations or infectious disease," said study author Dr. Freed.

"There is a danger in the media of putting up celebrities as experts on any topic for which they have an opinion, and giving them a platform to share their opinions that is presented as equal to true experts."

Two percent of parents said they trusted celebrities "a lot," 24 percent said they trusted celebrities somewhat for vaccine information, and 74 percent said they trusted celebrities "not at all." Women and Hispanics were more likely to trust celebrities.

The author suggests that pediatricians listen to parents' concerns and direct them to appropriate resources for information.