A health influencer advised her followers not to take the Coronavirus-19 vaccine due to heart damage risks. This needs context.
Chanita Villegas-Nodel, known on social media as Doc Chanie, posted a Facebook (FB) reel on May 28 warning her followers against heart damage risks associated with the COVID-19 vaccine. Citing a recent order from the United States Food and Drug Administration (U.S. FDA), she said:
“FDA ordered Covid vaccine manufacturers noong April 17, 2025 na maglagay po sa labels nila na pwede na po itong mag-cause ng myocarditis, pericarditis at myocardial infarction or heart attack lalong lalo na daw po sa kalalakihan edad 16 hanggang 25 years old. Kaya ‘yung mga ganyan pong edad, lalo na po ‘pag lalaki, ‘wag muna tayong magpa-Covid vaccine, ha?”
(FDA ordered Covid vaccine manufacturers on April 17, 2025 to include on their labels that the vaccine can now cause myocarditis, pericarditis and myocardial infarction or heart attack especially for men aged 16 to 25. So for those who fall under those ages, especially men, do not take the Covid vaccine, okay?)
Villegas-Nodel added that in lieu of vaccines, patients should focus on strengthening their natural immune system. She said:
“Palakasin lang po ang atin pong immune system na binigay po sa atin ng ating Diyos. ‘Yan po ang pinaka-best na depensa mo sa kahit ano pong impeksyon.”
(You only need to strengthen your God-given immune system. That is your best defense from any infection.)
She included clips of former American cardiologist Peter McCullough saying that the COVID-19 vaccine is directly fatal, can cause fatal side effects months or years after receiving the vaccine and that the vaccine does not decrease the risk of death from COVID-19.
The FDA ordered two manufacturers to update their COVID-19 vaccine warnings to include heart damage risk. However, the warning refers only to increased risk and not guaranteed damage. The adverse effects were observed in 38 cases for every 1 million (0.0038%) men aged 12 to 24 who received the vaccine, not all of the recipients in that demographic.
Villegas-Nodel is trained in obstetrics and gynecology, which are fields not directly concerned with the COVID-19 vaccine. McCullough’s board certifications were revoked for peddling vaccine-related misinformation.
On April 17, the FDA ordered Moderna and BioNTech, Pfizer’s vaccine partner, to update their COVID-19 vaccine warnings. In its letters, the FDA cited several studies from 2023 to 2024 in which some male patients experienced myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) and pericarditis (inflammation of the lining around the heart) within a week of receiving their second dose of the vaccine.
For both vaccines, these heart inflammations occurred in approximately 38 cases per million or 0.0038% of recipients in the specified demographic. The FDA advised the two manufacturers to update their warnings against increased risk of heart damage in men aged 16 to 25.
An October 2024 study funded by the FDA saw “improvement over time in most people” who experienced these vaccine-related heart injuries. “Studies are underway to find out if there are long-term heart effects in people who have had myocarditis after receiving an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine,” the study said in part.
Vaccines introduce small amounts of the virus into the body so the immune system can produce antibodies to fight off infection. “Vaccines help the body learn how to defend itself from disease without the dangers of a full-blown infection,” said the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. The immune system is better equipped to fight off future infections once it knows what antibodies to produce against certain viruses, says the World Health Organization.
Villegas-Nodel supposedly trained in obstetrics and gynecology, which are fields related to women’s reproductive health and do not directly concern the COVID-19 vaccine. She founded two companies that sell nutritional supplements as an alternative to pharmaceutical medicine. McCullough’s board certifications in cardiology and internal medicine were revoked as of 2025 by the American Board of Internal Medicine following a 2022 notice advising the revocation of his certifications due to spreading misinformation on COVID-19 vaccines.
The FB reel has so far garnered over 8,200 reactions, 1,300 comments, 6,600 shares and 384,000 views.
