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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

Polio Elimination Due to Vaccination, Not End of Pesticide Use

Polio Elimination Due to Vaccination, Not End of Pesticide Use

Polio, a paralytic disease caused by a virus, has been eliminated in the U.S. — and nearly wiped out globally — thanks to vaccines. But social media posts are reviving old, false claims that polio is instead caused by pesticides and outbreaks of the disease ended when people stopped using DDT.