The director of public health in Teesside (an obscure little part of England), states that a increase in local syphilis reports could be linked to the use of social networking sites like Facebook. Data published by several British newspapers this week indicated that cases of syphilis had increased fourfold in Sunderland, Durham and Teesside, the areas of Britain where Facebook is most popular. Both the Director of Public Health & these British newspapers make the epic mistake of forgetting that correlation does not equal causation.
Professor Peter Kelly, director of public health in Teesside, told The Sun newspaper that "social networking sites are making it easier for people to meet up for casual sex".
"I don't get the names of people affected, just figures, and I saw that several of the people had met sexual partners through these sites," he said.
In the Telegraph report, Professor Peter Kelly told the paper:
"There has been a fourfold increase in the number of syphilis cases detected with more young women being affected. I don't get the names of people affected, just figures, and I saw that several of the people had met sexual partners through these sites. Social networking sites are making it easier for people to meet up for casual sex."
The Telegraph says that according to research young people in the Teesside area were 25% more likely to log onto social networking sites than those in the rest of Britain.
My opinion is that Professor Peter Kelly should be sacked from his position director of public health for promoting such silly logical fallacies. The increase in both STD's & the use of Facebook is a correlation, the real causation of the increase in syphilis is the reduction in the use of condoms, doh!
