01/09/2020
A Facebook post shared thousands of times claims that taking a person’s temperature with an infrared thermometer near their head risks damaging the pineal gland, which is located in the brain. This is false, said neuroscience experts, who explained that this type of thermometer does not emit infrared radiation but captures wavelengths from the body.
This Facebook post from July 25, 2020, and shared more than 2,000 times claims to be written by an unnamed Australian nurse who warns about the purported dangers of infrared thermometer guns.
“Are we being desensitized to be targeted at the head and also causing potential health issues by aiming an infrared ray to the pineal gland?” part of it reads.Earlier French versions of the claim were shared more than 6,000 times on Facebook. They were debunked.
The posts falsely imply that taking someone’s temperature with an infrared thermometer gun aimed at the head is harmful to the pineal gland, which is located in the brain.
France’s National Agency for the Safety of Medicines and Health Products (ANSM) told AFP on July 23, 2020, that “the individual tested is in no way subjected to exposure to infrared radiation during the temperature measurement”.
The thermometer captures infrared spectra or radiation emitted by the human body through a lens on a sensor. Depending on the wavelengths of the radiation received, it displays a higher or lower.
We care about your health and ours. If you are still concerned about our temperature checks, please feel free to bring in your own thermometer and we will be happy to use it.
