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Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare10122507 www.mdpi.com/journal/healthcare
Article
Eight-Element Communication Model for Internet Health
Rumors: A New Exploration of Lasswell’s “5W Communication
Model”
Haibin Wei 1, Jianyang Chen 2, Xinyan Gan 2 and Zhenyi Liang 2,*
1 Public Management College, Guangxi University, Nanning 530004, China
2 Public Health and Management College, Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine, Nanning 530200, China
* Correspondence: lzyliang@gxtcmu.edu.cn
Abstract: (1) Background: Rumors are a special type of information. Based on the classic theory of
the communication of information, the “5W” communication model, this article aims to build a new
model and thus explains the generation and communication of Internet health rumors. (2) Methods:
The authors selected 50 Internet health rumors, which were widely spread in widely used websites
and social media in China, then grounded theory is used to perform the qualitative analysis of the
Internet health rumors. (3) Results: Three Core Concepts are abstracted after qualitative analysis.
An internal dynamic mutual assistance mechanism of the communication of rumors is built and
illustrated. Based on Lasswell’s “5W” communication model, the authors develop an eight-element
communication model for Internet health rumors to illustrate the generation and communication of
Internet health rumors. (4) Conclusions: By removing one or several elements of this new model,
the chain of the communication of Internet health rumors could be cut off, which is valuable infor-
mation for the government or websites to manage communication of Internet health rumors.
Keywords: Internet health rumors; 5W communication model; grounded theory
1. Introduction
We are surrounded by health rumors. When a pandemic rages, health rumors spread
even more rapidly. The COVID-19 pandemic is the most recent example. Compared with
traditional rumors, Internet rumors are characterized by faster spreading, wider influ-
ence, greater social harm, higher professionalism, greater concealment, and larger temp-
tation. The Internet is gradually becoming an important platform for people to gain health
information that is easily made up and spread. Against the backdrop of the “Healthy
China” strategy, the governance of Internet health rumors has become one of the difficult
problems faced by the Chinese government. The Chinese government has strengthened
the governance of Internet rumors, but there are many problems with rumor control.
This study focuses on the micro-level of Internet health rumors to profoundly explore
the flexibility and applicability of the 5W communication model based on three questions,
“How are Internet health rumors generated?” “How are Internet health rumors spread?”,
and “How do elements of the generation and communication of Internet health rumors
interact with each other?” A new theoretical communication model is constructed to an-
swer the questions about Internet health rumors.
2. Literature Review
As stated in Webster’s Dictionary of the English Language, rumor refers to gossip,
talk, or opinion without a discernible source or known authority for its truth. With rumors
Citation: Wei, H.; Chen, J.; Gan, X.;
Liang, Z. Eight-Element
Communication Model for Internet
Health Rumors: A New Exploration
of Lasswell’s “5W Communication
Model”. Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507.
https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare101
22507
Academic Editors: Teen-Hang Meen,
Chun-Yen Chang, Charles Tijus and
Po-Lei Lee
Received: 26 October 2022
Accepted: 5 December 2022
Published: 11 December 2022
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neu-
tral with regard to jurisdictional
claims in published maps and institu-
tional affiliations.
Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Li-
censee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
This article is an open access article
distributed under the terms and con-
ditions of the Creative Commons At-
tribution (CC BY) license (https://cre-
ativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 2 of 22
in Massachusetts as the case, Knapp initially studied the causes, consequences, and con-
trol strategies of rumors [1]. The process of rumor spreading was concisely described by
formulas and models by several scholars. Allport believes that rumor = importance (event)
× fuzziness (event), pointing out the direct proportion between the occurrence of rumor
and the importance and fuzziness of events [2]. Chorus improved this formula into rumor
= importance (event) ×fuzziness (event) × critical ability of the public, believing that rumor
spreading is correlated with the public’s critical ability [3]. Other models of communica-
tion of rumors are also proposed.
Among the Internet rumors, health rumors are the worst. False information spreads
significantly farther and faster than true information does [4]. Health misinformation also
applies to this rule. For example, misinformation about the Zika virus was three times
more likely to be shared than verified stories on social media sites [5]. The reason is that
health misinformation was novel and resulted in more emotions such as disgust, fear, and
surprise [4] (p.2). Scholars proposed specific ways to reduce the spread of health misin-
formation. For example, rumor-dispelling warnings such as “this tweet may contain mis-
information” would decrease users’ likelihood of sharing a health rumor [6]. Additionally,
the corrective health information posted by experts or authoritative institutions on social
media can reduce the dissemination of health misinformation effectively. [7]
The 5W communication model provides a theoretical basis for explaining the propa-
gation mechanism of Internet health rumors. The spread of Internet health rumors is a
subdivision of information dissemination. When it comes to information dissemination, it
is necessary to mention the well-known “5W communication model”. American sociolo-
gist Harold Lasswell officially put forward the “5W model” in his book The Structure and
Function of Communication in Society [8]. The “5W” refers to Who, What, In Which Channel,
To Whom, and With What Effect. There are different attitudes towards the contribution
of Lasswell and his 5W model of communication, which has triggered heated debates in
the academia. Shoemaker, Tankard, and Lasorsa consider that the “5W model” was one
of the earliest and most influential communication models [9]. Biagi (2013) considers it to
be one of the primary drivers behind current conceptions of mass communication [10].
However, McQuail believes it to be conceptually dated due to its linear orientation [11].
Especially after the emergence of the Internet, considering the impact of the Internet on
the 5W model, the scholar maintains that the study on communication should break
through the bottleneck of linear structure and be promoted to a perspective of media and
social relations [12].
To sum up, those who support the 5W model believe that the 5W model effectively
illustrates the process and elements of information dissemination in society, and the
model still has its explanatory power and applicability even to this day. The opposing
view is that the 5W model is outdated and unable to adapt to the environment of the
Internet, but few researchers have put forward any improvement plans. This study holds
that we should dialectically explore new value and application of the 5W model rather
than simply support or oppose it. For instance, by expanding the five elements, Peng
found that “Under new media environment, communication process and the research of
such five elements will have greater opportunities and broader prospects for development
[13].” We quite agree with the view of Sapienza who believes that Lasswell’s construct is
inherently flexible enough to meet the theoretical needs of today’s scholars [14]. On this
basis, the process and elements of information dissemination described by the 5W model
can provide a theoretical basis and analytical framework for this study, and the 5W model
is also believed to be applicable and expandable at the micro level of Internet health ru-
mors.
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 3 of 22
3. Materials and Methods
3.1. Sources of Text Materials
We collected 50 Internet health rumors which are widely spread as text materials.
Institutions for science communication, social media, news websites, and government
would release the lists for the most popular Internet rumors in the field of health and
science—for example, China Association for Science and Technology, WeChat, Sina web-
site, Toutiao website, and Beijing News, etc. The topics are usually about food safety, med-
icine safety, and environment issues. The rumors appeared from 2014 to 2019. We selected
the classic Internet health rumors from these lists. These rumors are suitable to serve as
empirical data. According to the generation mechanism of these text materials, it is possi-
ble to explain the mechanism and pattern of generation and dissemination of Internet ru-
mors.
The information for 50 Internet health rumors is in Appendix A, including title of
rumor, name of the lists, the platforms, and website addresses.
3.2. Coding Program
3.2.1. Coding Procedure
This qualitative study is based on text materials. With the coding technology of the
grounded theory, the Nvivo12.0 software is used to encode the data step by step, until it
reaches theoretical saturation when there is no new concept. The grounded theory re-
quires researchers to carry out two parts of work. (1) Open coding is the initial stage of
constant comparative analysis, before delimiting the coding to a core category and its
properties [15]. (2) Selective coding means that “the analyst delimits coding to only those
variables that relate to the core variable in sufficiently significant ways to be used in a
parsimonious theory” [16].
In this study, the coding technology of the grounded theory is applied in two aspects.
First of all, open coding is conducted by labeling the content related to the basic theme in
the text materials and recording the feelings after reading the text materials. Secondly,
selective coding is to sort and classify the labels, refine the key factors of the generation
and dissemination of Internet health rumors, and summarize the internal relationships
among the key factors.
3.2.2. Reliability and Validity
A unified standard improves the validity of qualitative research. The research team
formulated a detailed coding guideline through discussion and selected two analysts to
code separately by following the coding guideline. The cross-validation shows that 90%
of the nodes coded by the two analysts are consistent. Code comparison verifies the relia-
bility of the qualitative study. The coding nodes achieved full coverage of the 50 Internet
health rumors from 2014 to 2019, and no new nodes appeared, which indicated high va-
lidity of the coding results.
3.2.3. Results of Coding of Text Materials
After open coding, the text materials are summarized as 55 Primary Concepts (see
Table 1). The grounded theory requires the researchers to conduct selective coding to gen-
eralize the Primary Concepts to Core Concepts. During the process of the first selective
coding, the team classified the Primary Concepts into nine Category Concepts (See Table
2). For the second selective coding, nine Category Concepts are generalized into three
Core Concepts, that is, Correlation, Credibility, and Communication (See Table 3).
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 4 of 22
Table 1. The results of open coding
Number Primary Concept Text Frequency
Examples of Reference Points
A1 Bluff 42 171 Eyeball exercises can reduce shortsightedness from 500 de-
grees to 100 degrees.
A2 Twisting the truth
41 136
A packet of instant noodles contains 25 kinds of food addi-
tives, and it takes 32 days to detoxify after eating a bowl of
instant noodles.
A3 Being close to life 37 116
Heavy haze would do harm to lungs of people. Eating
blood of pig, blood of duck, and other animal blood can
clean the lung.
A4 Fear of cancer 18 74 Radiation from geothermal heating can produce cancer.
A5 Life reminder 24 72 The editor learned that the steamer is so poisonous, so do
not steam food by using cold water at home.
A6 Food safety 17 65
There are a lot of Toxoplasma gondii in cucumber. It can
only be cured by eating selenium. (This rumor actually is for
selling healthcare products containing selenium.)
A7 Cognitive contrast
21 59 Compared with patients who refuse chemotherap
y, patients
who accept chemotherapy would die faster.
A8 Established fact 23 58
Garlic would produce acrylamide when it is fried at high
temperature. Acrylamide is a class of 2A carcinogen that is
harmful to human body.
A9 Authority of ex-
perts 23 57
Chinese experts warn that geothermal heating radiation
may cause intellectual disability or amnesia among chil-
dren.
A10 Pretending to be
surprised 20 52 Wi-Fi! The killer hiding in your bedroom at night!
A11 Authority of agen-
cies 25 51 According to the definition of junk food of the World
Health Organization, white rice is junk food!
A12 Creating suspense
16 48 Why can’t China improve the radiation protection level of
car body like Japan?
A13 Children’s health 13 45 Geothermal heating is slowly killing your children while
bringing you warmth.
A14 Research data 17 44 Research from Spain: 90% of shopping receipts contain bi-
sphenol A, which can produce cancer.
A15 Eye-catching head-
line 36 37
Children would not grow after taking
antibiotics once every
7 days! Parents, please watch them carefully for your chil-
dren!
A16 Inducing curiosity
15 36
Is there nuclear haze in China? Why is this concept blocked
on the Internet? What happened?
A17 Environmental
Issue 8 32
Drug-resistant bacterium, “the last antibiotic of mankind”,
is found in the haze in Beijing, and we could do nothing
with it.
A18 Creating panic 13 32
Haze is a first-class carcinogen! It would block 30 million al-
veoli in your body a year! It would block a third of alveoli
for three years!
A19 Literary rhetoric 14 31
Vegetable oil can produce fatty acids which can harm hu-
man body, just like effects that climate change threatens the
earth.
A20 Marketing strategy
8 29 Cancer patients are cured
miraculously after drinking juice
of wheat seedling.
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 5 of 22
A21 Fabricated research
12 27
After 12 days of experiment, the seeds germinated and
thrived in the room without router, while most of the seeds
of cress and pea died in the room with router!
A22 Chronic diseases 9 24 The ancient prescription of dredging blood vessels would
work no matter how serious it is!
A23 Media reports 12 19 Foreign media reported that Ebola virus evolved into zom-
bie virus.
A24
Fabricating the case
for a specific per-
son
9 16
John Di Carlo, a 72-year-old man, suffered from leukemia.
He used dandelion to make tea and drink it every day. Only
four months later, his condition began to improve.
A25 Women’s health 10 15
The radiation of high-speed railways is
heavy. It would do
harm to unmarried women. So unmarried women do not
take them frequently! (Author: this rumor means that the ra-
diation of high-speed railway may cause infertility of un-
married women.)
A26 Traditional medi-
cine 5 15 Dandelion root can kill 98% cancer cells in 48 h!
A27 Moral kidnapping
10 13 Let’s retweet, my friend! For yourself, for your family, and
for your friends!
A28 Professional nouns
3 12 Salmonella, which can cause food poisoning, has been de-
tected in the eggs that have speckles.
A29 Political smear 3 12
Many countries, such as France, Germany, and Japan have
developed the technology of reducing radiation. The rail-
way research institution of China also develops this technol-
ogy, but the Ministry of Railways has no plans to use it.
A30 Authoritative jour-
nal 8 11
Environmental Research Journal shows that 90% of receipts
use thermal paper containing bisphenol A(BPA), which can
lead to hormone-dependent cancer.
A31 Skin beauty 3 9 The secret of the three effects of enzyme beauty, which
makes you 10 years younger!
A32 The health of the el-
derly 8 9
The old lady’s cancer was cured by drinking wheat seedling
juice.
A33 Inside information
6 9
Warm reminder from the hospital: The pathogens caused by
haze mainly aim at children under 12 years old.
A34 False science com-
munication 5 8 The persistent haze in North China belongs to nuclear
smog.
A36
Taking advantage
of celebrity 5 7
In the speech, Zhong Nanshan (a famous expert in the area
of contagion) quoted the relevant statistics of China Envi-
ronmental Protection Association: For the children with leu-
kemia, 90% of them have had luxurious decoration in their
homes. About 2.1 million children die from luxurious deco-
ration every year.
A37 Fawning on for-
eigners 2 7 Crayfish is a kind of insect that is used to process corpses,
and foreigners never eat this food.
A38 Fear of AIDS 1 7 Hong Kong University’s new drug to eliminate AIDS is
simply too powerful.
A39 Traditional culture
2 6
Look at the word “rice”. “Food + anti = rice” (in the
context
of Chinese Character) means the sequence of eating is
wrong!
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 6 of 22
A40 Spread of the virus
1 5 Transgenic mosquitoes may be the chief cause of the out-
break of Zika virus.
A41 Oral health 1 5 It is the correct brushing posture to brush toothpaste di-
rectly without touching water.
A42 Historical event 3 5 Japanese biochemical troops used crayfish to dispose of a
large number of corpses.
A43 Video commentary
4 5
The photographer said: “This is Toxoplasma gondii (a kind
of parasite). It can’t be killed even when the temperature is
at 260 ℃. It must be cured with selenium.”
A44 Drug safety 2 4 Red alert: Statins may accelerate the aging process.
A45 Men’s health 4 4
Geothermal heating affects the human reproductive system,
which is mainly manifested by the decrease of male sperm
quality.
A46 Mental health 3 3
Stan said: “If you eat too much corn oil or sunflower oil, the
lack of Omega-3 may lead to mental health or aphasia.”
A47 Policy suggestion 3 3 China should formulate a unified national standard for
safety of geothermal heating radiation as soon as possible.
A48 False theory 2 3 Cut 2–3 slices of lemon and put it in the hot water, which
will turn into alkaline water. It is good to drink it every day.
A49 Educational video
3 3
The video shows that the workers put the plastic into the
machine and the machine produces the
white particles. The
worker also put these white particles into a woven bag orig-
inally used for containing rice. (This rumor let people be-
lieve that the white particles are the white rice and they
would be sold on the market)
A50 Occupational
health 1 2 1 million lives have gone per year because of safety acci-
dents of the coal industry in China
A51 Place of incident 2 2
Hookworm has appeared in pork in Zhejiang province,
Guangdong province, Hunan province, and other places.
The sick pork comes from Guangxi province.
A52 Mathematical for-
mula 1 2 Shrimp + vitamin C = food poisoning
A53 Rumor’s deriva-
tives 1 2
See the article “See how western doctors ‘starve’ cancer cells
and cure their cancer”.
A54 The health of the
disabled 1 1 People who do not have a sexual partner or have no chil-
dren can be classified as disabled.
A55 Pretended ques-
tioning 1 1
A user majoring in chemistry also questioned that the heat
resistance of polyester material used to make beverage bot-
tles is 70 ℃, but “the temperature in cars cannot reach 70
℃”!
Table 2. Primary Concept and Category Concept
No. Category
Concept
Primary
Concept Frequency Connotation
1
Attracting
the attention
of the public
Eye-catching headline
424
“Attracting public attention” plays a criti-
cal role in promoting the generation and
communication of Internet health rumors,
with the eight primary concepts, e.g.,
“eye-
catching headline” and “pretending
Pretending to be surprised
Media reports
Taking advantage of celebrity
Cognitive contrast
Literary rhetoric
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 7 of 22
Bluff to be surprised”, being the important
means of “attracting public attention”.
Creating suspense
2
Faking real
information
Traditional culture
286
With real information in ten aspects
mixed with fake information, the public
finds it difficult to distinguish the genuine
from fake. There is a process relationship
between “faking real information” and
“attracting public attention”; that is, Inter-
net health r
umors generally attract public
attention first, which then makes it hard
for the public to distinguish the faked real
information, thereby interfering with the
cognition and judgment of the public.
Traditional medicine
Established fact
Research data
Fabricated research
Historical event
Authority of agencies
Authoritative journal
Authority of experts
Professional nouns
3 Fuzzy truth
Being close to life
264
The fuzzy truth in the field of Internet
health rumors has the following features:
being close to life, twisting the truth, false
science communication, false theory, and
pretending to raise questions. As a result,
the public is unable to clearly recognize
the truth about health and will be con-
stantly trapped by the “cage” of Internet
health rumors.
Twisting the truth
False science communication
False theory
Pretending to raise questions
4
Meeting psy-
chology of
the public
Fear of cancer
240
Internet health rumors meet the
multiple
psychological needs of the public. Fear of
cancer and fear of AIDS reveal the public’s
psychology of avoiding diseases; life re-
minder reflects the altruistic psychology;
political smear and fawning on foreigners
meet the psychology of harm the society
(rumors could be taken advantage by peo-
ple who have malicious intentions).
Inducing curiosity
Fear of AIDS
Creating panic
Life reminder
Political smear
Fawning on foreigners
5
Covering
different ar-
eas of the
health issues
Spread of the virus
147
The need of health information is a signifi-
cant factor leading to Internet health ru-
mors. Based on the collected materials, In-
ternet health rumors cover eight domains
such as spread of the virus, environmental
issue, chronic diseases,food safety and
drug safety. Therefore, there is nowhere
for the public to hide from Internet health
rumors while satisfying their needs of ob-
taining health information.
Environmental issue
Oral health
Chronic diseases
Skin beauty
Mental health
Drug safety
Food safety
6
Focusing on
the health of
different
groups of
people
Children’s health
76
Focusing on the health of different groups
of people promotes the public to rapidly
propagate Internet health rumors. The
children’s health, women’s health, the
health of the elderly, men’s health, occu-
Women’s health
The Health of the elderly
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 8 of 22
Men’s health
pational health, and the health of the disa-
bled involved in this category have cov-
ered almost all groups of people. It
strengthens the correlation between re-
ceivers and Internet health rumors, which
leads the public to actively propagate the
rumors by connecting the false infor-
mation with people around them.
Occupational health
The Health of the disabled
7
Inducing
secondary
transmission
Moral kidnapping
49
Intimidating and seducing the receivers to
carry on the secondary dissemination pas-
sively is the remedy in the case of ineffec-
tive active spread of Internet health ru-
mors. Due to moral kidnapping, the re-
ceivers have no choice but to spread the
rumors. Slogans such as “retweet, bro” in
marketing strategy and video commen-
tary are very incendiary. Rumor’s deriva-
tives refer to the mutual assistance be-
tween two or more rumors in spreading.
Video commentary
Rumor’s derivatives
Marketing strategy
8 Fictitious in-
formation
Fabricating the case for a spe-
cific person
21
Those who spread Internet health rumors
are good at making up relevant infor-
mation. Changing the case for a specific
person or place of the incident related to
health information can often bring Inter-
net health rumors back to life. Policy sug-
gestion makes rumors forward-looking,
making it impossible for the receivers to
judge whether they are true or false.
Place of the incident
Policy suggestion
9
Claiming as
reliable in-
formation
Inside information
14
Internet health rumors often claim to be
reliable. To prove themselves reliable, In-
ternet health rumors often
resort to inside
information, mathematical formulas, and
educational videos.
Mathematical formula
Educational video
Table 3. Category Concept and Core Concept
Core Concept Category Concept
Correlation
Fictitious information
Focusing on the health of different groups of people
Covering different areas of the health issues
Credibility
Claiming as reliable information
Faking real information
Fuzzy truth
Communication
Inducing secondary transmission
Meeting psychology of the public
Attracting the attention of the public
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 9 of 22
4. Discussion
4.1. Generation of Three Core Concepts and Their Relationship
4.1.1. Generation Based on Correlation and Credibility
“Correlation” is the prerequisite for the generation of Internet health rumors. The
public’s actual demands for health information have led to the generation of Internet
health rumors. Based on the results of open coding, regarding the groups of people that
are targeted, Internet health rumors related to children’s health are responded to most
frequently, with such rumors being encoded 45 times among the 13 text materials. Re-
garding the fields of the health issue involved, the highest response frequency was found
in Internet health rumors about food safety, with such rumors being encoded 65 times
among the 17 text materials (Figure 1). The frequent occurrence of Internet health rumors
concerning children’s health and food safety is associated with the psychology of caring
for children by parents and the concern about the food. In addition, when fabricating a
fictitious person or place in a vivid context, Internet health rumors are becoming seem-
ingly authentic. Hence, Internet health rumors have been closely related to the health is-
sues of different groups of people. Hence, the rumors attract different groups of people to
read and focus on.
Figure 1. Number of rumors based on groups of people and encoded frequency based on fields of
Internet health rumor.
“Credibility” guarantees the generation of Internet health rumors. The Category
Concept “Faking real information” is a common trick for generating Internet health ru-
mors, the Category Concept “fuzzy truth” is a necessary condition for generating Internet
health rumors, and the Category Concept “Claiming as reliable information” makes In-
ternet health rumors more mysterious. As early as 1947, the generation of rumors was
proportional to the importance and fuzziness of events. Credibility directly determines
the “quality” of Internet health rumors.
4.1.2. Communication by Duplication and Variation
The ultimate goal of rumor mongers is to spread Internet health rumors. From the
selective coding results, the Core Concept “Communication” involved 49 text materials
and is encoded 713 times as the most frequently encoded core category. Moreover, accord-
ing to the coding frequency of 50 text materials in the core category matrix, except for
“Claiming as reliable information”, Core Concepts “Correlation” and “Credibility” highly
frequently respond to the concept “Communication” as shown in Table 4.
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 10 of 22
Table 4. Interaction of correlation, credibility, and communication based on 50 Internet health ru-
mors.
Communication
Meeting Psychology
of the
Public
Inducing Second-
ary Transmission
Attracting the Attention of the
Public
Correlation
Fictitious infor-
mation 6 3 8
Focusing on the
health of different
groups of people
16 5 17
Covering different ar-
eas of the health is-
sues
25 10 30
Credibility
Claiming as reliable
information
0 0 0
Fuzzy truth 35 11 43
Faking real infor-
mation 26 7 32
The spread of Internet health rumors mainly refers to duplication and variation. First
of all, duplication needs to attract the attention of the public, with the eye-catching head-
line being the most representative approach. Secondly, it is necessary to meet psychology
of the public. When people are anxious about topics related to themselves, they create and
spread rumors [17]. Fear of cancer and curiosity are the main psychological motivation
for the public to spread Internet health rumors. Thirdly, to extensively spread Internet
health rumors, secondary transmission is induced. It is manifested in different ways. For
example, the Primary Concept of “moral kidnapping” means the health rumors are con-
nected it to the receivers’ families (e.g., “Just spread it out, simply for the health of your
family”). Videos’ commentary makes rumors incendiary. Taking advantage of rumor’s
derivatives is the way that using another rumor to verify the original rumor which makes
them more credible. Economic benefits are used as the bait to spread the rumors (e.g.,
rumor mongers distribute a small amount of money in a chatting room in “WeChat” to
stimulate spreading) . The key factor “acquaintances” induce the varied communication
of Internet health rumors. Rumors do not come from strangers, but from our acquaint-
ances [18]. For example, the function “Moments” of social media is the best place for post-
ing articles, pictures and videos.Internet health rumors are shared and posted there and
are easily shared by other friends with a simple click. The spread of Internet health rumors
is intensified by the promotion of “acquaintances”. Even health issues that originally have
little to do with people become closer to life simply due to the recommendation, comments,
or spread by acquaintances. They are particularly able to stimulate, trigger, or arouse peo-
ple’s attention even if it is only browsing [19].
4.1.3. Internal Dynamic Mutual Assistance Mechanism
Correlation, Credibility, and Communication are the three key factors of the genera-
tion and communication of Internet health rumors. Correlation, as the source power, trig-
gers Credibility if people have great demands for health information but insufficient
knowledge about health. Credibility promotes communication. Studies have shown that
high credibility increases trust and the intention to share rumors [20]. Credibility makes
rumors more persuasive, especially for Internet users who lack the motivation to process
information [21]. Moreover, communication also affects credibility. According to the spi-
ral of silence theory, when people holding certain opinions are in the “minority”, they
tend to remain silent so as not to be isolated [22]. In the Internet environment, people who
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 11 of 22
hold minority opinions tend to remain silent or even join the majority to protect them-
selves from cyber violence. Consequently, recurrent rumors are reinforced and become
credible, because people do not spread rumors that they do not believe. They only believe
what they choose to believe. Spreading dreadful rumors verify their prejudices to share
feelings of fear and reduce discomfort [23]. Therefore, when rumors are spread to a certain
degree, their correlation and credibility will be strengthened, as shown in Table 4. Figure
2 shows the relationship among Correlation, Credibility, and Communication and the
process of the formation of Core Concepts from Primary Concepts.
Figure 2. Internal dynamic mutual assistance mechanism (relationship among Correlation, Credi-
bility, and Communication).
4.2. Eight-Element Communication Model for Internet Health Rumors
The Internet environment diversifies the elements of the generation and communi-
cation of Internet health rumors. Internet health rumors cannot exist independently in
Internet environment, and their generation and communication are deeply influenced by
the external environment, especially in the era of “new media”.
The 5W communication model provides the theoretical basis for the communication
of Internet health rumors. Harold Lasswell proposed the “5W” communication model in
his book The Structure and Function of Communication in Society. “5W” represents “Who”,
“What”, “In Which Channel”, “To Whom”, and “With What Effect” (Figure 3). The 5W
communication model has the value of application and the room for extension. The ap-
plication to the area of Internet health rumors is worth exploring.
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 12 of 22
Figure 3. “5W” communication model that was proposed by Harold Lasswell.
“Who” is expanded to rumor mongers and refuters, and “What” is enlarged to Inter-
net health rumor information, rumor-dispelling information, and hot events. To release
their stress and tension [24] and take revenge on the society [25], rumor mongers make up
Internet health rumors. The Internet environment is thereby filled with health rumors.
Internet rumors severely endanger national political security, social stability, economic
security, and social order [26]. Therefore, the government, authoritative media, and other
rumor refuters do not allow the generation and communication of Internet health rumors.
Rumor refuters and mongers fight against each other, and rumor-dispelling infor-
mation released by rumor refuters compete with Internet health rumors on the Internet.
For example, the original text of Internet health rumors in some of the 50 samples are
hardly found on the Internet because these rumors are dispelled by the government, sci-
entific research institutions, authoritative media, and social media platforms. For these
rumors, they are seen in the text of rumor-dispelling information as objects of analysis.
Therefore, only rumor-dispelling information is shown to the public and the communica-
tion chain of the rumors is cut off. Thus, rumor refuter and rumor-dispelling information
as new elements are necessarily added in the new communication model.
Hot events are likely to induce the public to emotionally spread Internet rumor in-
formation based on their prior experience [27]. Hot events have a weighted effect on the
generation and communication of Internet health rumors. In this study, Internet health
rumors which are widely spread are caused by hot events related to food safety, drug
safety, disease, environment, and psychology. The hot events are closed to quality of life,
health, and life, so it easily triggers the emotion of the public and leads to virus-like dis-
semination. For instance, due to the frequent occurrence of hot events related to food
safety, the Internet health rumor that “spotted eggs are poisonous” in 2018 was highly
similar to a short video popular in 2015. Thus, hot events is brought into the new commu-
nication model as a new element.
“In Which Channel” refers to the diversification of media channels. In the Internet
environment, the media that spread Internet health rumors include websites, post-bars,
BBS, Weibo, blogs, WeChat, instant messaging, and e-mail in diversified forms ranging
from text to picture, sound, and video. Concerning the 50 Internet health rumors, they are
from websites and social media, and the content are shown by texts, pictures, and short
videos. It is more difficult to prevent Internet health rumors from spreading in multiple
forms and via multiple media channels. Moreover, the evolution of media has not only
affected the way of information transmission between people but also have brought a new
impact on the “special information”, rumors.
“To Whom” indicates the diversification of receivers. The elderly, children, and
women are the receivers accurately targeted by Internet health rumors. The Analysis Re-
port of Population Vulnerable to Rumors released by Tencent Company in 2017 also
shows that the elderly are most vulnerable to the spread of Internet rumors, and health
rumors account for the highest proportion of rumors spread among the elderly (The re-
port is released by Tencent Truth Platform in 2017). In addition, mutual confirmation be-
tween receivers is another factor that promotes the extensive spread of rumors. Apart
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 13 of 22
from arousing the attention of receivers, Internet health rumors also have to make them-
selves convincing among the targeted receivers to achieve the purpose of communication.
As pointed out by Kapferer, there are three conditions for rumors to be convincing: a) the
source of information is reliable, b) the information should be what people expect and
want to know, and c) the information should sound real [28]. The Category Concepts such
as “faking real information”, “fuzzy truth”, “claiming as reliable information”, and “meet-
ing the psychology of the public” in the coded materials exactly reveal the above view-
points.
“With What Effect” is the effect or result of the generation and communication of
Internet health rumors. A specific scenario is that the receiver reads (or does not read),
believes (or does not believe), and spreads (or does not spread) the Internet health rumors.
Based on the result of this study, Core Concepts are abstracted, namely, Correlation, Cred-
ibility, and Communication. Whether people read, believe, and spread an Internet health
rumor is based on the three Core Concepts. These three Core Concepts constitute an in-
ternal dynamic mutual assistance mechanism for the generation and communication of
Internet health rumors, which explains the generation and communication of Internet
health rumors.
Therefore, Rumor Mongers, Rumor Refuters, Internet Health Rumors, Rumor-Dis-
pelling Information, Hot Events, Media Channels, Receivers, and Effect constitute the
eight elements throughout the generation and communication of Internet health rumors
as shown in Table 5. Among them, rumor refuters, rumor-dispelling information, and hot
events are three new elements added based on the 5W communication model;
“Who” ,”What” “In Which Channel”, “To Whom” and “With What Effect” have also been
given new meanings in the context of the Internet environment.
Table 5. Eight-element communication model for Internet health rumors
Who What In Which Channel To Whom With What Effect
1 Rumor
mongers
(communi-
cators)
3 Internet
health rumors
5 Hot events-- In-
cluding various
health issues,
such
as environment,
psychology, dis-
ease, drug, and
food.
6 Media Channel—
Website, post bar,
BBS, Weibo, blog,
WeChat, instant
messaging, e-mail
etc.
7 Receivers—
All groups of
people, e.g., the elderly,
children, women, and men.
8 Effect— read(not
read), believe (not be-
lieve), and spread
(not spread).
2 Rumor
refuters
4 Rumor-dispel-
ling infor-
mation
4.3. Relationships among Eight-Element Communication Model
Coupling refers to the phenomenon that two or more systems or two forms of motion
influence each other and even unite through interaction [29]. The key to coupling is to
break the boundaries of the original system and recombine the related elements according
to the natural association of the elements and the free flow of information and form a
“living” subject system with self-organizing structure and dynamic elements in the sys-
tem [30]. Based on the 5W communication model, we proposed the eight elements of the
generation and communication of Internet health rumors. The coupling of Internet health
rumors refers to the interaction and unification of rumor mongers, rumor refuters, rumor
information, rumor-dispelling information, hot events, media channels, receivers, and ef-
fects through various ways and forms during the generation and communication of Inter-
net health rumors. From different perspectives, the eight elements of the generation and
communication of Internet health rumors have different combination forms to explain the
process and mechanism of the generation and communication of Internet health rumors.
The relationships are shown in Figure 4.
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 14 of 22
Figure 4. Relationship among eight-element communication model. Rumor memo: meaning the
receiver knows that this health information is a rumor, marks it as “rumor”, and would not be-
lieve and spread it.
From the perspective of the system boundary, the eight-element communication
model includes internal and external coupling. The internal coupling refers to the internal
dynamic mutual assistance mechanism mentioned above among the three elements,
namely correlation, reliability, and communication. Internet health rumors are “time
bombs”. Once rumors are contacted by the receivers, the internal dynamic mutual assis-
tance mechanism of Internet health rumors starts to work, and the receivers make the
following choices: (a) unrelated → filter, (b) related → unreliable → filter → rumors
memo, (c) related → reliable → not to spread → filter → rumors memo, and (d) related →
reliable → spread → related. External coupling refers to how the seven elements interact
with each other and with an internal mutual dynamic assistance mechanism. Whether
people read (or do not read), believe (or do not believe), and spread (or do not spread) is
determined by correlation, credibility, and communication, respectively. Therefore, the
eight-element communication model is illustrated as follows: (a) rumor mongers → Inter-
net health rumors → receivers → not to read, (b) rumor mongers → Internet health rumors
→ receivers → read → not to believe ← rumor-dispelling information ← rumor refuters,
(c) rumor mongers → Internet health rumors → receivers → read → believe → not to
spread ← rumor-dispelling information ← rumor refuters, and (d) rumor mongers → In-
ternet health rumors → receivers → read → believe → spread ← rumor-dispelling infor-
mation ← rumor refuters. The relationships are shown in Figure 4.
From the perspective of the development process, the eight-element coupling model
includes the prelude to coupling, the occurrence of coupling, and removing coupling.
Prelude to coupling refers to the stage in which the Internet health rumors made up by
rumor mongers have not reached the receivers, that is, rumor mongers → Internet health
rumors. At this stage, there is no coupling effect among the eight elements. The coupling
effect is imminent because they aim at specific populations such as kids, women, or elders.
Once rumors reach the receivers, the coupling effect occurs. The occurrence of coupling is
the stage in which the Internet health rumors made up by rumor mongers have reached
the receivers and produced certain effects, that is, rumor mongers → Internet health ru-
mors → receivers → effect. The coupling effect is manifested as reading, believing, and
spreading. According to the influence of the coupling effect, rumor refuters fight against
rumor mongers and Internet health rumors by releasing them at different degrees. Re-
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 15 of 22
moving coupling refers to the rumor-dispelling information. From the perspective of de-
velopment, the three stages of the eight-element coupling model can be summarized and
simplified as rumor mongers → Internet health rumors → receivers → effect ← rumor-
dispelling information ← rumor refuters (Figure 4).
From the perspective of the number of elements, the eight-element coupling model
includes weak coupling, regular coupling, and strong coupling. Weak coupling refers to
the coupling phenomenon with incomplete main elements (rumor mongers, receivers,
and rumor refuters) and the incomplete relationship between elements without interven-
tion elements (hot events and media channels), e.g., rumor mongers → Internet health
rumors → receivers → effect. Regular coupling refers to the coupling phenomenon with
complete main elements (rumor mongers, receivers, and rumor refuters) and complete
relationship between elements but without intervention elements (hot events and media
channels), e.g., rumor mongers → Internet health rumors → receivers → effect ← rumor-
dispelling information ← rumor refuters. Strong coupling refers to the coupling phenom-
enon with complete main elements (rumor mongers, receivers, and rumor refuters), the
complete relationship between elements, and intervention elements (hot events and me-
dia channels), as shown in Figure 4.
In summary, the relationships among this eight-element communication model from
three perspectives are illustrated. Based on this, the research team proposed the idea that
the approach to the governance of Internet health rumors is to break the relationship
among the eight elements.
5. Strategies for Governing Internet Health Rumors
5.1. From the Perspective of Rumor Mongers and the Channels: Controlling the Publishing and
Spreading of Internet Health Rumors
Information source determines the origin of rumors, and also becomes a key factor
in evaluating the credibility of Internet health rumors, which has a significant impact on
the popularity and duration of Internet rumors of public events. The professionalism of
the rumor monger and the authority of the platform for Internet health rumors directly
affect whether the Internet health rumors would be read, believed, and spread. Therefore,
only by tracking the information source and taking targeted measures can the Internet
health rumors be effectively eliminated or reduced. At the same time, the government
should pay close attention to hot issues in the health field to avoid or reduce the generat-
ing and spreading of health rumors on the Internet. For example, new Internet health ru-
mors have surged since 2020, such as COVID-19, related medicine, and related vaccine.
Regarding channels for communication of Internet health rumors, news media, social me-
dia, and other platforms should be hold accountable if they have no policy or actions for
controlling Internet health rumors. The spread of some Internet health rumors could be
cut off by those channels. The government should strictly monitor and control the chan-
nels and media for releasing and disseminating Internet health information, establish a
regular governance mechanism, and conduct emergency management for the possible
wrong and misleading public Internet health information.
5.2. From the Perspective of Rumor Refuter: Improving the Governance Ability of Internet
Health Rumors
The government often plays the key role of “rumor refuter” in rumor control, and
the credibility of the government is the key to effectively dispel rumors. If the govern-
ment’s credibility is vulnerable, it may fall into the “Tacitus trap” (Tacitus trap: a political
theory named after Roman historian Tacitus, which describes a situation where an un-
popular government is hated no matter what it does and whether it is right or wrong), in
the process of releasing refuting rumors on the Internet. In the field of health information
communication, the credibility of the government is mainly reflected in the timeliness and
transparency of Internet health information. In order to avoid falling into the “Tacitus
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 16 of 22
trap”, the government should actively build professional Internet-health-rumor-refuting
think tanks and platforms to timely and effectively popularize correct health information.
It is essential to take advice from professional scientific research institutions and acquire
assistance from news media, so that the Internet health information would be profes-
sional, authoritative, and timely. Only a combination of multiple ways can prevent the
growth and spread of Internet health rumors to the greatest extent.
5.3. From the Perspective of Receiver: Improving Literacy of Health Information of the Public
Improving literacy of health information of the public can enhance their immunity to
Internet health rumors, so that it would fundamentally reduce the credibility and block
dissemination of Internet health rumors.
Especially, it is necessary to enhance the scientific communication for vulnerable
groups, such as children, women, and the elderly. Additionally, scientific communication
should specifically aim at the key health issues, that is, food safety, environment issues,
and diseases.
In addition, “minority” opinions of Internet health information communication
should also be taken into account. The spiral theory of silence holds that when people’s
opinions belong to “minority” opinions in the public opinion, they tend to keep silent to
avoid isolation. In the field of health information communication, opinions of “minori-
ties”, especially those of professionals, cannot be ignored. How to make professional In-
ternet health information become “dominant opinions” is also a problem worth further
consideration.
6. Conclusions
By analyzing 50 text materials of Internet health rumors based on grounded theory,
three Core Concepts are abstracted, that is, Correlation, Credibility, and Communication.
The internal dynamic mutual assistance mechanism among these three concepts is illus-
trated. Based on the feature, changes, and trends of the Internet, Lasswell’s 5W commu-
nication model needs to be reexamined and expanded. Thus, five elements are expanded
to eight elements, namely, rumor mongers, rumor refuters, Internet health rumors, rumor-
dispelling information, hot events, media channels, receivers, and effect. The eight ele-
ments are combined in different forms. The eight-element communication model is
viewed from three perspectives. The relationships among eight elements are explained
and illustrated to reveal the complicated process and internal mechanism of the genera-
tion and communication of Internet health rumors.
Compared with the linear mechanism of the 5W communication model, this model
develops the process of generation and communication of Internet health rumors. In ad-
dition, it is the application of the 5W communication model at the micro level. The signif-
icance of this study is that cutting off the chain among these eight elements may eliminate
or weaken the harm and impact of Internet health rumors. Thus, it provides the practical
reference value for the government to control Internet health rumors. This article also pro-
poses three strategies for governing Internet health rumors from three perspectives, that
is, rumor mongers and the channels, rumor refuters, and rumor receivers. By governing
the Internet health rumors from multiple ways, Internet health rumors could be reduced
or blocked timely and effectively in the future.
Author Contributions: Conceptualization, H.W. and Z.L.; methodology, H.W.; software, H.W.; val-
idation, J.C. and Z.L.; formal analysis, H.W.; investigation, J.C.; resources, H.W.; writing—original
draft preparation, H.W.; writing—review and editing, Z.L.; supervision, X.G.; project administra-
tion, X.G.; funding acquisition, Z.L. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of
the manuscript.
Funding: This research was funded by “The Research of Hospice Care law in China under the per-
spective of ‘Healthy China Strategy’”, the funder is Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine, grant
number 2020BS001; “The Research on integrated traditional Chinese and western medicine medical
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 17 of 22
emergency treatment system in response to pandemic from the perspective of collaborative govern-
ance”, grant number 20FGL004.
Institutional Review Board Statement: Not applicable.
Informed Consent Statement: Not applicable.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Appendix A
Table A1. Information of 50 Internet health rumors.
No. Year Rumor The Title of News
Platform Website Address
1 2014
The radiation of Wi-
Fi would influence
the health of the hu-
man body (based on
a fabricated experi-
ment)
the Top 10 Rumors
for Science of 2014
China Association for Sci-
ence and Technology (a
big national association
for researchers, which is
financially supported by
the Chinese government.
It has branches in almos
t
every province and big
city in China. One of its
goals is for science com-
munication)
https://baike.baidu.com/refer-
ence/16532553/
4de4MAgwjp6_
027xghfhwmNk-
Wpn6kMaMDm1MZtEjO6HnTr
2Rbn77tzXYVjbRzwHrJCtp7QY
PhBfyVDFGHox-vJfXYk3nG-
gbLnjp6xA3 (accessed on 26 Oc-
tober 2022)
2 2014
It would take 32 days
to detoxify after eat-
ing a bowl of instant
noodles
the Top 10 Rumors
for Science of 2014
China Association for Sci-
ence and Technology
https://baike.baidu.com/refer-
ence/16532553/
4de4MAgwjp6_
027xghfhwmNk-
Wpn6kMaMDm1MZtEjO6HnTr
2Rbn77tzXYVjbRzwHrJCtp7QY
PhBfyVDFGHox-vJfXYk3nG-
gbLnjp6xA3 (accessed on 26 Oc-
tober 2022)
3 2014
There are 6 hazards
for the radiation
from geothermal
heating
the Top 10 Rumors
for Science of 2014
China Association for Sci-
ence and Technology
https://baike.baidu.com/refer-
ence/16532553/
4de4MAgwjp6_
027xghfhwmNk-
Wpn6kMaMDm1MZtEjO6HnTr
2Rbn77tzXYVjbRzwHrJCtp7QY
PhBfyVDFGHox-vJfXYk3nG-
gbLnjp6xA3 (accessed on 26 Oc-
tober 2022)
4 2014
Children would not
grow after taking an-
tibiotics once every 7
days
the Top 10 Rumors
for Science of 2014
China Association for Sci-
ence and Technology
https://baike.baidu.com/refer-
ence/16532553/
4de4MAgwjp6_
027xghfhwmNk-
Wpn6kMaMDm1MZtEjO6HnTr
2Rbn77tzXYVjbRzwHrJCtp7QY
PhBfyVDFGHox-vJfXYk3nG-
gbLnjp6xA3 (accessed on 26 Oc-
tober 2022)
5 2014 French scientists
have proved that
the Top 10 Rumors
for Science of 2014
China Association for Sci-
ence and Technology
https://baike.baidu.com/refer-
ence/16532553/
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 18 of 22
transgenic corn
would produce can-
cer
4de4MAgwjp6_
027xghfhwmNk-
Wpn6kMaMDm1MZtEjO6HnTr
2Rbn77tzXYVjbRzwHrJCtp7QY
PhBfyVDFGHox-vJfXYk3nG-
gbLnjp6xA3 (accessed on 26 Oc-
tober 2022)
6 2014
People who are in-
fected with Ebola vi-
rus would become
zombies
the Top 10 Rumors
for Science of 2014
China Association for Sci-
ence and Technology
https://baike.baidu.com/refer-
ence/16532553/
4de4MAgwjp6_
027xghfhwmNk-
Wpn6kMaMDm1MZtEjO6HnTr
2Rbn77tzXYVjbRzwHrJCtp7QY
PhBfyVDFGHox-vJfXYk3nG-
gbLnjp6xA3 (accessed on 26 Oc-
tober 2022)
7 2014
Bottled water is poi-
sonous after it is
heated by sun
the Top 10 Rumors
for Science of 2014
China Association for Sci-
ence and Technology
https://baike.baidu.com/refer-
ence/16532553/
4de4MAgwjp6_
027xghfhwmNk-
Wpn6kMaMDm1MZtEjO6HnTr
2Rbn77tzXYVjbRzwHrJCtp7QY
PhBfyVDFGHox-vJfXYk3nG-
gbLnjp6xA3 (accessed on 26 Oc-
tober 2022)
8 2019
The radiation of
high-
speed railways
would cause infertil-
ity of unmarried
women
the Top 10 Rumors
for Science of 2019
China Association for Sci-
ence and Technology
https://m.thepaper.cn/baijia-
hao_5386755 (accessed on 26
October 2022)
9 2019
Eyeball exercises
would cure short-
sightedness
the Top 10 Rumors
for Science of 2019
China Association for Sci-
ence and Technology
https://m.thepaper.cn/baijia-
hao_5386755 (accessed on 26
October 2022)
10 2015
Eating pork blood,
duck blood, and
other animal blood
can eliminate haze
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2015
WeChat (
the most widely
used social media in
China)
http://health.peo-
ple.com.cn/n1/2016/0106/c21471
-28020014.html
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
11 2015
Milk products for
children contain spe-
cific kind of bacteria,
which could cause
leukemia
the Top 10
Rumors
on WeChat of 2015
WeChat
http://health.peo-
ple.com.cn/n1/2016/0106/c21471
-28020014.html
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
12 2015
Drinking the juice of
wheat seedling
would cure cancer
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2015
WeChat
http://health.peo-
ple.com.cn/n1/2016/0106/c21471
-28020014.html
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
13 2015 Crayfish is used to
process corpses
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2015
WeChat
http://health.peo-
ple.com.cn/n1/2016/0106/c21471
-28020014.html
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 19 of 22
14 2015
Using water which
contains chlorine for
cooking can lead to
cancer
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2015
WeChat
http://health.peo-
ple.com.cn/n1/2016/0106/c21471
-28020014.html
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
15 2015
Water used for
steaming food actu-
ally contains nitrite,
which could produce
cancer
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2015
WeChat
http://health.peo-
ple.com.cn/n1/2016/0106/c21471
-28020014.html
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
16 2015
Using vegetable oil
for cooking would
produce cancer
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2015
WeChat
http://health.peo-
ple.com.cn/n1/2016/0106/c21471
-28020014.html
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
17 2015
There are 6 hazards
for the radiation of
Wi-Fi
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2015
WeChat
http://health.peo-
ple.com.cn/n1/2016/0106/c21471
-28020014.html
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
18 2015
Radiation from geo-
thermal heating
would kill your chil-
dren slowly
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2015
WeChat
http://health.peo-
ple.com.cn/n1/2016/0106/c21471
-28020014.html
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
19 2016
A table showing that
some specific kind of
food could not be
eaten together
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2016
WeChat
http://www.chinatt315.org.cn/xf
js/2017-1/6/152242.html (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
20 2017 Nori and rice are
made of plastic
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2017
WeChat
https://tech.qq.com/a/20180117/
034052.htm (accessed on 26 Oc-
tober 2022)
21 2017
Some Chinese medi-
cine or prescription
could improve blood
flow
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2017
WeChat
https://tech.qq.com/a/20180117/
034052.htm (accessed on 26 Oc-
tober 2022)
22 2018
Drinking hot lemon
water can cure can-
cer
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2018
WeChat
https://www.sohu.com/a/28583
6139_120046571
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
23 2019
Salt which contains
less sodium would
lead to death
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2019
WeChat
https://news.mydriv-
ers.com/1/664/664851.htm (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
24 2019
Pork sold in the mar-
ket has hookworm in
several provinces
the Top 10 Rumors
on WeChat of 2019
WeChat
https://news.mydriv-
ers.com/1/664/664851.htm (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
25 2016
Drug-resistant bacte-
ria is found in the
haze in Beijing
the Top 10 Rumors
for Haze of 2016
Ministry of Environment
protection of China
https://www.bjnews.com.cn/hea
lth/2017/01/03/429287.html (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
26 2016
The heavy haze in
North China is
caused by nuclear
pollution
the Top 10 Rumors
for Haze of 2016
Ministry of Environment
protection of China
https://www.bjnews.com.cn/hea
lth/2017/01/03/429287.html (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
27 2016
The particles of haze
would influence the
the Top 10 Rumors
for Haze of 2016
Ministry of Environment
protection of China
https://www.bjnews.com.cn/hea
lth/2017/01/03/429287.html (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 20 of 22
health of alveoli in
human body
28 2016
Survival rate of pa-
tients who accept
chemotherapy is
only 2.3%
the Top 10 Rumors
for Health of 2016
Beijing News (a widely
used news media in
China)
https://www.bjnews.com.cn/hea
lth/2017/01/03/429287.html (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
29 2016
People who have no
children would be
seemed as the disa-
bled
the Top 10 Rumors
for Health of 2016
Beijing News
https://www.bjnews.com.cn/hea
lth/2017/01/03/429287.html (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
30 2016
2.1 million children
die from luxurious
decoration every
year
the Top 10 Rumors
for Health of 2016
Beijing News
https://www.bjnews.com.cn/hea
lth/2017/01/03/429287.html (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
31 2016
Statins (a kind of
medicine) may accel-
erate the aging pro-
cess
the Top 10 Rumors
for Health of 2016
Beijing News
https://www.bjnews.com.cn/hea
lth/2017/01/03/429287.html (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
32 2016
The pathogens
caused by haze
mainly aim at chil-
dren under 12 years
old
the Top 10 Rumors
for Health of 2016
Beijing News
https://www.bjnews.com.cn/hea
lth/2017/01/03/429287.html (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
33 2016
Washing hair first
when taking showers
could cause disease
the Top 10 Rumors
for Health of 2016
Beijing News
https://www.bjnews.com.cn/hea
lth/2017/01/03/429287.html (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
34 2016
Transgenic mosqui-
toes are main cause
of the outbreak of
Zika virus
the Top 10 Rumors
for Health of 2016
Beijing News
https://www.bjnews.com.cn/hea
lth/2017/01/03/429287.html (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
35 2016
Using pencil for a
long time would
cause lead poisoning
the Top 10 Rumors
for Health of 2016
Beijing News
https://www.bjnews.com.cn/hea
lth/2017/01/03/429287.html (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
36 2017
Dipping water on
toothbrush before
brushing teeth is nec-
essary
the Top 10 Rumors
for Health of 2017
Sina website (a widely
used news media in
China. It covers almost
every aspect of news in-
cluding health areas)
http://health.sina.com.cn/hc/201
8-03-07/doc-
ifxipenn6660392.shtml (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
37 2017
Enzymes (a kind of
product) could beau-
tify the skin
the Top 10 Rumors
for Science of 2017
Sina website
http://health.sina.com.cn/hc/201
8-03-07/doc-
ifxipenn6660392.shtml (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
38 2017
Eating durian and
milk together can
lead to food poison-
ing
the Top 10 Rumors
for Food Safety of
2017
Sina website
http://health.sina.com.cn/hc/201
8-03-07/doc-
ifxipenn6660392.shtml (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
39 2017
Gene detection could
predict the talent of
children
the Top 10 Rumors
for Science of 2017
Sina website
http://health.sina.com.cn/hc/201
8-03-07/doc-
ifxipenn6660392.shtml (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 21 of 22
40 2017
Dandelion can cure
cancer
the Top 10 Rumors
for Healthcare of
2017
Sina website
http://health.sina.com.cn/hc/201
8-03-07/doc-
ifxipenn6660392.shtml (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
41 2018
Shopping receipts
contain bisphenol A
which can cause can-
cer
the Top 10 Rumors
for Science of 2018
China Science Communi-
cation (China Science
Communication. It is a
platform specifically for
science communication)
http://kpzg.peo-
ple.com.cn/n1/2019/0116/c40421
4-30551221.html
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
42 2018
People have two con-
stitutions, acid or al-
kaline
the Top 10 Rumors
for Science of 2018
China Science Communi-
cation
http://kpzg.peo-
ple.com.cn/n1/2019/0116/c40421
4-30551221.html
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
43 2018
USA Food and Drug
Administration has
approved a broad-
spectrum antibiotic,
which has 75% cure
rate
the Top 10 Rumor
of 2018 Guokr website
https://www.bili-
bili.com/read/cv1769532 (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
44 2018
University of Hong
Kong invented a new
drug which can cure
cancer
the Top 10 Rumors
of 2018
Guokr website (a widely
used website specifically
for science education)
https://www.bili-
bili.com/read/cv1769532 (ac-
cessed on 26 October 2022)
45 2018
Frying Garlic would
produce the sub-
stance which could
cause cancer
the Top 10 Rumors
for Healthcare of
2018
Toutiao website (
a widely
used news media in
China)
https://www.sohu.com/a/28678
6229_120050866
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
46 2018
Coffee from Star-
bucks could cause
cancer
the Top 10 Rumors
for Healthcare of
2018
Toutiao website
https://www.sohu.com/a/28678
6229_120050866
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
47 2018
According to WHO,
white rice is junk
food
the Top 10 Rumors
for Healthcare of
Second Quarter of
2018
Toutiao website
https://www.sohu.com/a/24001
8276_331220 (accessed on 26
October 2022)
48 2018
Cucumber contains a
lot of worms
the Top 10 Rumors
for Healthcare of
Second Quarter of
2018
Toutiao website
https://www.sohu.com/a/24001
8276_331220 (accessed on 26
October 2022)
49 2018
Eggs which have
speckles could lead
to food poisoning
the Top 10 Rumors
for Healthcare of
Second Quarter of
2018
Toutiao website
https://www.sohu.com/a/24001
8276_331220 (accessed on 26
October 2022)
50 2019
Drinking the tea
made by Ginkgo leaf
could decrease blood
pressure
the Top 3 Rumors
for Healthcare of
2019
Shanghai Rumor-
Refuting
Platform (a platform for
refuting rumors in Shang-
hai)
http://piyao.jfdaily.com:1801/py
_
4vMWkj9Fy8LJp8MpVOEV/
rYZvFcdECbhrPRMUuRm/
t6ViQR402s+94+
8DZfygLrK9jkaAigp/
GLs2ECG9wcD
(accessed on 26
October 2022)
Healthcare 2022, 10, 2507 22 of 22
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