A post on a Nigerian Facebook page claims a mixture of eggs, shea butter and cucumber will firm up breasts that have “fallen” because of breastfeeding.
The post advises women to follow the procedure once a day for two weeks: “Mix a cucumber, add the egg yolk and a teaspoon of shea butter. Mix everything together. Apply by massaging the chest from bottom to top while lying on your back then go to your occupations let act for 30 minutes then rinse with cold water.”
Africa Check phoned the number given on the Facebook page, titled The Professor, to ask if the mixture was medically proven.
“The mixture is effective with no side effects and it is medically proven,” the person who answered told us. They would not give their name. We asked for this proof, but are yet to receive a reply.
So we consulted an expert.
“I have never heard of such a mixture before in the medical field,” Prof Cyril Dim Chukwudi, a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist at the University of Nigeria in Nsukka, told us.
“If the man says it is medically proven, let him present the proof stating it has been approved by scientists and doctors,”
Chukwudi said the ingredients weren’t harmful to the body, but he knew of no evidence that they would affect the firmness of a woman’s breasts. – Jennifer Ojugbeli
The post advises women to follow the procedure once a day for two weeks: “Mix a cucumber, add the egg yolk and a teaspoon of shea butter. Mix everything together. Apply by massaging the chest from bottom to top while lying on your back then go to your occupations let act for 30 minutes then rinse with cold water.”
Africa Check phoned the number given on the Facebook page, titled The Professor, to ask if the mixture was medically proven.
“The mixture is effective with no side effects and it is medically proven,” the person who answered told us. They would not give their name. We asked for this proof, but are yet to receive a reply.
Not harmful, but won’t affect breasts
So we consulted an expert.
“I have never heard of such a mixture before in the medical field,” Prof Cyril Dim Chukwudi, a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist at the University of Nigeria in Nsukka, told us.
“If the man says it is medically proven, let him present the proof stating it has been approved by scientists and doctors,”
Chukwudi said the ingredients weren’t harmful to the body, but he knew of no evidence that they would affect the firmness of a woman’s breasts. – Jennifer Ojugbeli
For publishers: what to do if your post is rated false
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Click on our guide for the steps you should follow.
Publishers guideAfrica Check teams up with Facebook
Africa Check is a partner in Meta's third-party fact-checking programme to help stop the spread of false information on social media.
The content we rate as “false” will be downgraded on Facebook and Instagram. This means fewer people will see it.
You can also help identify false information on Facebook. This guide explains how.
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