Clip of official touting hypertension remedy 'maliciously edited': Philippine health department

"A popular heart expert has raised the discourse on studies on high blood pressure," read the Tagalog-language caption of a Facebook video that was viewed more than 970,000 times after it was shared on March 25, 2024.

White text superimposed on the video says "DOH undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire."

The clip shows a purported interview where Vergeire -- a physician and a public health official -- promotes an unnamed remedy for hypertension, which was the sixth-leading cause of death in the Philippines in 2023 (archived link).

Vergeire appears to say: "This can clean blood vessels and remove two kilogrammes of blood clots in a day."

She also appears to urge users to click on a link at the bottom of the post for an "exclusive interview" about managing the condition. 

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Screenshot of the altered video shared on Facebook, captured on April 9, 2024

Variations of the video were shared on the same Facebook page here and here, where they racked up at least 750,000 views.

Comments on the posts suggest some users believed the undersecretary promoted a hypertension cure.

"What is the procedure in taking this, Dr Vergeire? Should it be once a day?" one user asked.

Another said: "I already placed an order."

But the DOH said the video has been "maliciously edited".

AFP has previously debunked claims about purported hypertension remedies here. 

Dr Anthony Leachon, a cardiologist from the Manila Doctors Hospital, previously told AFP there is no known cure for hypertension and it can only be controlled through lifestyle changes and taking blood pressure-lowering medications prescribed by doctors.

Manipulated videos

The DOH described the video as "false" in a post on its verified Facebook page on April 2 (archived link).

"The DOH clarifies that none of the allegations stated in the video are true and the purported interview with the official has been maliciously edited," the post read.

Keyword and reverse image searches on Google found the altered video originated from an interview on ABS-CBN News Channel from January 31, 2023 (archived link).

At the time, Vergeire was the health department's officer in charge (archived link).

The altered video matches the section beginning at the ABS-CBN video's 15:29 mark.

The audio, however, is different.

AFP ran the audio through an AI detection tool by Spanish startup Loccus, which considered the fragment to be "very likely  AI-generated."

In the interview, Vergeire speaks about the country's budget for procuring medicines. She does not mention hypertension or a cure for the condition in the 46-minute interview. 

Below is a screenshot comparison of the altered video (left) and the ABS-CBN interview video (right): 

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Screenshot comparison of the altered video (left) and the ABS-CBN interview video (right)

A variation of the claim shared on the same Facebook page used a different video of Vergeire, which was altered from a video published by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) on March 27, 2023 (archived link).

The altered video matches the section beginning at the 1:51 mark of the clip, albeit with different audio.

This audio was also considered by the Loccus tool to be "very likely AI-generated."

It shows Vergeire delivering a speech at a research conference held in September 2022; she did not introduce a hypertension cure. 

Below is a screenshot comparison of the altered video (left) and the video from September 2022 (right): 

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Screenshot comparison of the false video (left) and the video from September 2022 (right)

The same video of Vergeire can be found at the 1:11:35 mark of a livestream of the 2022 conference that was published on the official DOST YouTube channel (archived link).  

Philippine fact-checking organisation VERA Files has also debunked this claim. 

AFP has repeatedly debunked claims about unproven health products advertised in doctored news reports, including here and here.