As we kick off November, we’re diving headfirst into an essential discussion about navigating the sea of misinformation surrounding health. We kick off the Black Wellness Edit with an Augusta, Georgia-based expert who addresses patient concerns and explains how to keep patients informed and educated through science and research.
Dr. Donna Adams-Pickett is a physician and scientist who has been practicing Obstetrics and Gynecology for about 24 years. At her practice, Augusta Women’s Health and Wellness Center, she is diligent about making sure patients feel seen and educated when it comes to making decisions for their bodies. However, it’s getting harder for medical professionals to work under conditions where politicians spread disinformation on national platforms, most recently, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., spreading unproven claims that Tylenol causes autism.
The CDC has since released a statement addressing those claims, citing a few studies that haven’t yet provided concrete evidence (and RFK has also attempted to walk those claims back). Still, we decided to reach out to a medical professional for some thoughts from a practicing professional in the field. Here, Dr. Donna Adams-Pickett addresses patient concerns and explains how some doctors may be working to keep patients informed and educated through science and research.
EBONY: What’s the role of the CDC when it comes to health and science, especially in relation to other organizations such as the American Academy of Pediatrics or the American Association of Obstetrics and Gynecology?
Dr. Donna Adams-Pickett: It’s interesting because I have a PhD as well as an MD, and when I did my postdoctoral training, I did it at the CDC. So, I have a special place in my heart for the CDC outside of just being a physician. What I have always loved about the CDC, is that it takes the basic science. Researchers spend years in labs, gathering data and conducting research. They take all that science, look at it, and then determine how it can apply to our society medically.
That being said, we now have social media, where disinformation is on the rise. Are you seeing a shift in attitudes and misinformation manifesting in your patients? What should people keep in mind when they think they know something based on a so-called expert online?
Again, I consider myself a physician-scientist because I was a scientist first, becoming a clinician, and I have a true appreciation for the years of research that go into medical opinion. When you think about most of the vaccines we have now, it’s not like somebody went into their refrigerator, saw some mold, and said, “Hey, give it to people.” It was years and years of research. So, when someone says, ‘I’ve done my research’ on social media, I’m like, ‘That’s not research.’ If you were in a lab with some HeLa cells, and you were pinning them down in a culture and looking at them in the microscope, that’s research. Doing a quick TikTok search isn’t research, so patients are doing things and taking things that aren’t good for them and their overall health because they’re leaning into that more than they are their physicians.
About the stir that was created when RFK Jr said that Tylenol causes autism, assuming he meant acetaminophen. Talk about the uses of acetaminophen for pain management and fever management, especially during pregnancy.
What’s frustrating about that is that in the United States, the FDA is probably the most rigorous of all the drug, organism, and regulator organizations in the world. It takes decades for products to reach the market. So, when we make recommendations, we aren’t making them just out of the blue. Acetaminophen is used extensively in other countries in the world that have lower autism rates than we do in the United States. What we look at for a pregnant patient or anyone who’s ever been pregnant is evaluating the whole body; it’s a full-body experience when you think about the shift and the stretch of your tendons. I always tell patients: it’s like twisting your ankle and walking on it all day. That’s what your uterus is doing to your tendons down there, and so the chemical in your body that causes pain is called prostaglandin. Prostaglandins are also the chemicals that can cause your uterus to contract when you have cramps during your period. It’s because your uterus is contracting secondary to prostaglandin exposure. So, if you are in pain in your body, it’s making lots of prostaglandins, and you can have preterm labor. It’s a pretty significant impact to say these things, and they’re not based on science. We have strong scientific evidence supporting the safety of this medication during pregnancy.
As an example, my gastroenterologist instructed me only to take acetaminophen for pain for my gastritis. Someone mentioned to me that they have heart failure and was told the same thing by their doctor. So, isn’t it safe to say that some people aren’t advised to take anything other than acetaminophen?
It’s preferred because your only alternatives for pain are going to be aspirin, ibuprofen, or NSAIDs. Those medications actually can increase your risk of stomach bleeding, gastritis, and inflammation in the gut. It can also cause kidney issues and cause water retention, which can cause an increase in blood pressure, and we don’t see those things with acetaminophen. When I have patients right before they’re getting ready to go to surgery, I tell them 10 days before their surgery not to take anything with aspirin or ibuprofen in it because that’s going to increase their risk of bleeding during surgery. It’s a very safe medication.
What advice do you have for establishing a trusting relationship with your medical professional, especially amid so much chaos?
The first thing we do is address the elephant in the room: historically, our community has not had a trusting relationship with the medical establishment. I think when you have a clinician who recognizes that. I recognize that I can’t just say, “I need you to take this medicine,” I realize that because that distrust is there that I have to sit and have mini GYN university with my patients and explain how that medicine works, this is why I’m choosing this for you, and these are some potential side effects, but these are the benefits. You have to find the clinician who’s willing to take the time to teach you. The Latin word for doctor means teacher. Take the time to find a clinician who is willing to teach you so you can learn more about your health. Once you do, you will pass that along to your family and friends, and our entire community will start being healthier.