Dr. Suzanne Humphries scores 5/5 on our Quack Scale. She represents a high risk to the general public and we encourage members of the public to seek alternate medical or health advice. Do not follow recommendations from this individual relating to your personal health or the health of others and be wary of any products sold or recommended by this quack.
If you’re not sure how our Quack Scale works, click here for a detailed explanation
Qualification: Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University, 1993
Current Licensing Status: Humphries is licensed to practice in the state of Maine. She is ABMS Board Member certified in Internal Medicine. Her license is valid.
MD15655, and expires 05/31/2022
Resident: Bangor, Maine (as per licence)
Existing Complaints: None noted as public record
Website: None listed
Another doctor who has abandoned the world of science-based medicine for lala land. Humphries is a prominent figure in anti-vaccine circles and her 2013 book entitled ‘Dissolving Illusions’ may as well have been entitled ‘Ignoring Science’. It is a case study in the manipulation of existing scientific doctrine to support the author’s fraudulent and misleading claims regarding vaccination. She is dangerous and her deranged and unsubstantiated opinions have no place in modern medicine. Her opinions, writings, and advice, both medical and otherwise should be avoided.
Humphries enjoys strong ties to the disgraced doctor, Andrew Wakefield, and has drifted away from her formal medical training to embrace the world of homeopathy, vitalism and pseudo-science, much of which she supports with an active disinformation campaign of distorted science. She is very vocal on platforms like Youtube and enjoys large support within fringe health circles. She is also involved with the Medical Council on Vaccination, a front group for vaccine hysteria.
Like all the quacks and con-artists we list, Humphreys is able to use her limited and specific medical knowledge to confuse and mislead the public. Her views and support of anti-vaccine groups make her particularly dangerous. To form a clear opinion of just how misguided and lost Dr. Humphries has become, we recommend reading the accompanying articles below.
Supporting Articles
Publication – RationalWiki: Author: by Publication on Dec 20, 2019. Suzanne Humphries Verdict: She has also attempted to combine anti-vax sentiment with poorly-thought-out religious gobbledygook (i.e., lies purportedly based on scripture) in an effort to convince somebody that the Bible and Koran are opposed to vaccination. Pull the other leg, please.
She promotes mystical powers of Vitamin C, calling it “the basis of life,”[10] and asserts it magically “neutralizes any toxins in the blood.”[10] Additionally, she woefully misunderstands or willfully misrepresents research to support her ideas. In an article on whooping cough, she states that lethargy in chronically ill people is commonly due to Vitamin C deficiency, citing a paper on the antioxidative properties of Vitamin C in the mitochondria as her only evidence. In the same article, she asserts Sudden Infant Death Syndrome is caused by Vitamin C deficiency, yet her sole evidence is a paper which found carnitine supplementation prevented mitochondrial abnormalities in rats with Vitamin C deficiency
Publication – Science Blogs: Author oracknows on February 16, 2011 – Dr. Suzanne Humphries and the International Medical Council on Vaccination: Antivaccine to the core Verdict: A real anti-vaxxer and as you can see from the date on the article, she’s been at it for a while. A wonderful rebuttal of Humphries’ claims to be speaking from a position of authority and knowledge.
So let me get this straight. Vaccines have never been tested for long term complications? What about all those studies the looked for and failed to find links between vaccines and autism, asthma, sudden infant death syndrome, and many other conditions? Oh, wait. Dr. Humphries put the word “truly” in there. So she’s conceding that vaccines are safe based on the science thus far. She just thinks they aren’t “truly” safe, whatever that means. (Note also how she’s simply using a variant of the word “truth”; she’s clearly all about The Truth–big T–than she is about science.) Actually, I rather suspect the word “truly” means whatever Humphries wants to mean, the better to shift goalposts as more studies verifying the safety of vaccines roll in.
Publication – Medium: Author Isabella B., Dec 22, 2014. Why Dr. Suzanne Humphries, an anti-vaccine activist, is lying to you about measles. Verdict: Vaccinate or don’t vaccinate. But please don’t base your decision on the writings of this extremist.
The problem is that Dr Humphries is so fervent in her belief that vaccines are evil that it ultimately “blinds” her, and leads her to become clumsy in her interpretation of studies, which in turn hurts her credibility. The more you delve into her work and consult her sources, the more you will find her guilty of:
– Cherry-picking isolated statements from a range of studies that support her views but completely ignoring qualifying statements made by those authors and overall conclusions drawn in those studies.
– Aiming to confuse readers by quoting 30-year-old studies on the failures of the 1963 inactivated measles vaccine (and serum gamma globulin as a form of treatment) numerous times throughout the chapter, even though both are no longer in use.
– Ignoring data on counter studies and third world countries that are inconvenient to her claims.
– Stripping numerous quotes off their context as an intentional means to mislead and deceive.
