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Fernández Pharmacist
Álvaro Fernández, better known as ‘Pharmacist Fernández’It could be said that he is the most famous pharmacist in Spain. With almost 900.000 followers on TikTok and almost 300.000 on Instagram, the professional dedicates his spare time to health disclosure through social networks.
Every day Fernández dismantles widespread myths, gives health advice and seeks, in small pills, to transmit information that it seems that everyone knows, but in reality they are still topics of debate. And no one better than a working pharmacist to ‘get rid of the nonsense’ and avoid people end up doing more dangerous practices than anything else at home.
“I have my normal job in the pharmacy and what I dedicate to social networks is my free time, but in the end they are almost like two jobs”, assures Fernández, who in his more than 1.220 videos on Tik Tok, deals with sex education, dermatology, healthy habits and sometimes even relationships. We spoke with Farmacéutico Fernández at ABC Bienestar about all these widespread myths, and how not to fall into misinformation.
What are the advantages of disclosure through social networks?
In the end, social networks have a brutal reach, for good and for bad. I make a 30 second video and it reaches 100.000 people, for example. And imagine counting that to 100.000 people but behind the counter, it couldn’t be. So that power of dissemination is, for me, something that can be used great to disseminate. But of course, it can also be used for the opposite.
What are those topics for which they are ‘used for the opposite’?
In health, in general, there are many, many myths. Now with vaccines there are a lot of viral videos that are hoaxes. But this happens with lifelong things, like the myth that you get a cold from walking barefoot. Things that half of the mothers have told us all and each time they spread more. In sexual health there are also myths, half information … everyone thinks, but not everyone knows.
You mention sexual health. It is true that in your account you dedicate many videos to it …
When I started I had no special interest in focusing on sex education, but, as a result of the questions and doubts that they sent me, this is where most of the videos have come from. Doubts in this field have sent me a lot of things: about antioconceptives, about condoms … and on top of that things that I thought at first: “This cannot be a real doubt.” But it turns out they are. And they are things that I think everyone needs to know.
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A post shared by Alvaro Fernandez (@farmaceuticofernandez)
Any concrete example?
Of course! For example, natural contraceptive methods. I remember a video of a girl saying that she had not used a condom for two years; she was using ‘reverse gear’ and she had not gotten pregnant. Well girl, you were lucky, good for you, but it is not a very reliable method of contraception. Yesterday I saw a video of another girl who said that to find out if you are pregnant with a boy or a girl, you put a drop of oil on your belly: if it fell fast it was a boy and, if it was slow, a girl. Well, that video had like three million views. Okay, yes, there is a 50% chance of getting it right (laughs), but this kind of nonsense is the order of the day.
They are like methods that grandmothers used, but that have been transferred to social networks …
Yes, and people still believe it. Most very absurd things. For example, with menstruation there are many: that if you drink lemon juice, your period is cut. But, although they are things that I consider absurd, it is clear that people do not, because they keep asking about them. And I have even seen doctors telling things like that: they have no scientific basis, but if a man in a dressing gown comes out telling it, then people believe it.
There is also a lot of video of this type in the field of dermatology …
There are so many. It started with one that became very viral: you had to put your period on your face. And a lot has come from there. For example with lemon juice: they say to use it if you have acne. And let’s see, some have their basis, for example this juice can have an effect, but it is also likely to have a nose-bouncing effect. But, if lemon juice were to cure acne, it would have already been discovered. In the end it is that, they are grandmother’s solutions, some work, like honey for coughs, but most are even dangerous.
Another spread is to use ‘Coca-Cola’ to enhance tanning. It has its basis because sugar exfoliates the skin, it removes layers of dead cells, but rather than tanning, you are going to burn. And on top of that, that is something that was used when my mother was young.
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A post shared by Alvaro Fernandez (@farmaceuticofernandez)
Any more myths to avoid this summer?
There are many with sun protection. Or, for example, it is said that the wind and water make you darker, or that if it is cloudy you do not need to wear sunscreen because you do not burn. They are very widespread myths, which everyone thinks. And many have a base, as I said. For example, about cloudy days: it is true that part of the UV rays are filtered. But 80% goes through, so you can easily burn yourself. And also as the thermal sensation is lower, you burn more because you are more comfortable. And with the wind, or when we are in the water, the same thing happens. The air does not make you darker, but you are less hot, you are careless and you burn more.