Doc Adam or Adam Smith, an Australian doctor-YouTuber who had previously left the video-sharing platform due to legal troubles, has returned and challenged the claims of another popular doctor Farrah Agustin-Bunch, one of the individuals who sued him before.
The Filipino-speaking doctor, who is currently residing in Australia, has made it his “mission” to correct health misinformation in the Philippines through his YouTube channel.
However, in a video on October 14, Doc Adam claimed that Agustin-Bunch and Leo Ortiz, the chief executive officer of a coffee brand, filed lawsuits against him because of some of his content. This prompted him to stop his YouTube activities.
READ: Filipino-speaking Aussie doctor gets sued after calling out ‘slimming’ coffee brand
Aside from being a medical practitioner and running his YouTube channel, Doc Adam also sells health-related products on his online shop. He mostly sells widely acknowledged low-carb and low-sugar food staple alternatives such as quinoa, chia seeds, nuts, black rice and red rice.
Doc Adam’s comeback
In a post on his social media accounts on Sunday, Doc Adam taunted Agustin-Bunch over a supposed video that she will release to counter the former’s medical findings.
“Farrah, Inaabangan ko parin ang debunk na sinasabi mo. Mag-papasko na, wala pa din. Oh my Repolyo bilisan mo na. Ipakita mo sa lahat kung paano ‘chili saves our lives from heart attacks,’ ‘garlic is the best for cancer.’ Sa totoo lang, paubos na ang repolyo dito dahil sa payo mo,” he said.
The Australian medical vlogger attached screenshots of Agustin-Bunch’s claims in his post.
The Facebook account “Farrah Bunch Jack Bunch” indicated in the screenshots shared by Doc Adam was however, set to private.
Farrah, Inaabangan ko parin ang debunk na sinasabi mo. Mag-papasko na, wala pa din. Oh my Repolyo Bilisan mo na. Ipakita mo sa lahat kung paano "Chilli Saves our lives from heart attacks" " Garlic is the best for cancer" sa totoo lang, paubos na ang repolyo dito dahil sa payo mo. pic.twitter.com/qSdrbvhVZo
— Doc Adam (@docadamsmith) November 8, 2020
Asked by a Facebook user if the Filipino doctor will debunk Doc Adam’s research, Agustin-Bunch commented:
“I am. Big debunking videos require showing science, not shaking your head dismissively and claiming you’re right.”
Doc Adam also questioned why Agustin-Bunch’s post was a paid Facebook post even. He cited there was no need for it because Agustin-Bunch has millions of followers on the social networking site.
As of writing, Agustin-Bunch has more than 3.7 million followers on Facebook.
“Ang sa akin, nakita ko lang ang post na sobrang haba, nakita ko din that Facebook was paid para ipromote ang post na ito, bakit kailangan magbayad para makita ito ng tao? Hindi ko gets? Halos 4 million followers di ba? Saan sila? Yung nga. inaabagan ko pa ang videos mo,” he said.
The Australian doctor-vlogger also uploaded a new video on his channel titled “Ang Totoo.” He dedicated this to other social media personalities and his fans who supported him.
“I’m back Baby. This is for all the people that supported me, the doctors, the subscribers, the vloggers, my patients, my friends, my family,” he said on Facebook.
After this announcement, his “Doc Adam” trended on Twitter with his fans expressing their support to him.
Doc Adam pushes my will to educate others while learning in the process.
Educate rather than condemn, thank you Doc! pic.twitter.com/kCcSAykEEA
— Carlos (@CadayCarlos) November 8, 2020
LET'S GO DOC ADAM!! pic.twitter.com/1pXew8Inqv
— wanderer (@elijaayasa_nd) November 8, 2020
On Dr. Farrah
In his nearly 30-minute video, Doc Adam cited an old article from Quackwatch, a reference website that probes into health frauds, including practitioners.
The 2018 article titled “A Skeptical Look at the Activities of Farrah Agustin-Bunch, M.D.” written by Stephen Barret, M.D., who was also the organization’s founder, stated that consumers should be cautious of the Filipino doctor because of her ideas on cancer treatment.
The write-up also questioned some of Agustin-Bunch’s background details such as her claims on her cancer clinic, which had since been forced to close as well as her product claims.
The official website of Agustin-Bunch’s cancer clinic cited in the references section could no longer be accessed.
Agustin-Bunch, meanwhile, has not yet issued a response addressed to Doc Adam. However, in a lengthy post on November 2 published on her official Facebook page, she mentioned the criticisms against her.
“Negative professional criticism, especially in social media, serves no purpose other than to express ill will, affect the interests of others, and tarnish the image of one’s professional colleagues,” she wrote.
“I’m not claiming to be right and anyone else be wrong. I simply believe that as a result of consistent long-term medical investigation, I have continued to learn and grow as a Doctor. As such, ideas that I had once firmly held were shaken free with the overabundance of contrary evidence,” Agustin-Bunch added.
