The Happy Pear twins have apologised after receiving backlash following antibiotic comments made by a guest on their podcast.
Siblings Steve and Dave Flynn, who are known for their veganism campaign work, welcomed American doctor Zach Bush to the most recent episode of their podcast. But the episode proved controversial after Dr Bush repeatedly linked the use of antibiotics to mental health difficulties and listed several statistics which suggested that antibiotic consumption increases the chances of a depression diagnosis or anxiety disorders.
Dr Bush claimed that "one course of antibiotics" would lead to the "risk of major depression in the next 12 months" increasing by 24 per cent. He added: "Two courses of antibiotics in a year, my chance of getting major depression just went up by 45 per cent or 52 per cent. Of that, is a 45 per cent increase in anxiety disorders, 52 per cent in depression.
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"And so you’ve got this massive risk of dysfunction of the brain, your inability to be joyful, your inability to have pleasure because you took an antibiotic. There are new discoveries that are being made in our relationship to microbiome."
Listeners were quick to question the legitimacy of Dr Bush's claims, with many - even some from the medical community - criticising the remarks. They also accused the Happy Pear brothers of promoting inaccurate medical information following comments.
The Happy Pear have since issued an apology and distanced themselves from the comments, while also vowing to "endeavour to ensure that this does not happen again." A statement from a spokesperson for The Happy Pear to The Irish Mirror reads: "The Happy Pear acknowledges that some of the content in a recent reel post across some of our social media platforms in relation to a podcast with US-based Dr Zac Bush MD, has caused offence, with some statements not given the appropriate qualification or context.
"It was never the intention to mislead or to misinform and we sincerely apologise for any offence caused. The Happy Pear is about creating happier, healthier lives and building community. The Happy Pear itself does not constitute a medical professional or medical expert opinion. Our primary purpose serves to highlight some of the health and lifestyle benefits of plant-based eating."
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