Netizens on Facebook (FB) are resharing a two-year old social media post about a fake vitamin C product allegedly laced with monosodium glutamate (vetsin in Filipino). The claim is false.
Posts on the resurrected claim continue to gain traction, garnering over 169,800 recent views on the platform.
Cursory search shows that the false claim originated from residents of San Jose del Monte, Bulacan who received Cigla-kas sodium ascorbate capsules as part of their local government unit’s emergency food package in May 2020.
“There’s no truth in the news and posts online about the fake sodium ascorbate… as proof, licensed pharmacist Mark Anthony Sta. Maria conducted a povidone iodine test to detect the presence of vitamin C to compare vetsin from sodium ascorbate,” San Jose del Monte, Bulacan’s LGU stated in a June 1, 2020 advisory written in Filipino.
Cigla-kas, a product of St. Martin Pharmaceutical Laboratories, is approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
On Dec. 4 and 5, five netizens carried photos from the incorrect “fake vitamin C posts” from two years ago. Their posts’ content copied an FB post dated Sept. 20, 2020, which read in part:
“MAY KUMAKALAT NGAYON NA NAMIMIGAY DAW NG VITAMINS PERO ANG LAMAN NG VITAMINS AY VETSIN.. TANDAAN NYO PO KUNG MAY MAMIMIGAY NG VITAMINS MAS MABUTING SURIIN MUNA BAGO ITO INUMIN”
(Rumors are spreading that vitamins being given away actually contain vetsin. If someone gives you vitamins, remember to check before consuming it.)
The five recent false posts drew combined interactions of over 20,744, while the original post in September 2020 garnered more than 9,363 interactions.
Some netizens asked for the name of the vitamins, given the blurry photos. A few people accepted this as true, while some even tagged other people they know.
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(Editor’s Note: VERA Files has partnered with Facebook to fight the spread of disinformation. Find out more about this partnership and our methodology.)