Dear friend, dear friend,
A few days ago, the youtuber and naturopath Thierry Casasnovas was placed in police custody and indicted.
He explained his situation in a video here(1).
Thierry Casasnovas is above all a communicator.
He has made many videos on his Youtube channel which has more than 600,000 subscribers, which is huge.
He runs a website on which vitality courses, training and other products are offered.(2).
Thierry Casasnovas defends the natural life, hygiene, fasting and raw food, that is to say the fact of eating raw products. He defends the consumption of vegetable juices.
I hesitated to speak on this subject, because I have never met Thierry Casasnovas.
And I haven’t worked with him.
And to tell the truth, until this case, I had not seen his videos.
However, over the years, Thierry Casasnovas has become an important player in natural health.
His influence is great and it makes sense, basically, that society takes a close interest in what he says.
What do we blame him for?
In his video, Thierry Casasnovas explains that he is being prosecuted for:
- breach of trust ;
- abuse of weakness ;
- money embezzlement ;
- bleaching;
- illegal practice of medicine.
He concludes that this is a lot for one man.(1).
He explains that he was the subject of an investigation by Miviludes, a state body in charge of fighting against sects and sectarian aberrations.
An important matter that must be treated with nuance…
To my knowledge, Thierry Casasnovas has never received clients in a practice.
He did not prescribe or prescribe treatment to specific individuals.
This is not what we blame him for.
What he is accused of is his words.
A competing youtuber has gathered, in another video (here), sequences where Thierry Casasnovas may have gone too far(3).
We hear him say that chemotherapy is not useful, or that he thinks that fasting or good eating habits can cure certain diseases.
He talks about diabetes, bulimia, cancer and often with a certain ease. And he sometimes seems assertive or reckless. Is that enough to make him a criminal?
Your neighbor, whatever his profession, could tell you the same.
What characterizes the crime? His words ? His lack of diplomas? The number of subscribers on his youtube channel? Those who feel aggrieved by his words? Is it proven that people have stopped their medical treatment because of his statements?
Justice will have to decide.
But most people who listen to his advice follow him freely. His listeners know that he is not a doctor, which he reminds us, moreover, regularly.
This appears, in fact, very clearly on the description of his youtube channel(4).
Are we in a case of illegal practice of medicine or freedom of expression?
The response that justice will provide will be very important.
Who can talk about health in France?
In France, anyone without a medical degree is prohibited from making a diagnosis or issuing a prescription. (5)
Personalized health advice can only come from a doctor or pharmacist.
What about general health advice?
For a long time the question did not really arise.
Health messages passed through caregivers with whom the French had a relationship of trust.
But since then, the Internet has arrived.
The sources of information have multiplied. They also come from abroad.
And doctors and nurses have lost part of their monopoly on health.
Nevertheless, if you have health problems, it is obviously to your doctor that you must turn first!
Do the French still trust their doctors and health institutions?
Justice will seek the responsibility of a youtubeur who circulated information on health.
Either.
But how did we come to the point of fearing that the word of the first comer or almost could seriously compete with that of duly qualified doctors?
Why would patients be more willing to listen to a YouTuber rather than their GP?
Isn’t this a sign of a loss of confidence in the medical system?
Three years of institutional lies
We can have fun looking for the exaggerations or inaccuracies pronounced by a popular youtuber. Why not.
But it would also be good for the media to take the time to list the big lies uttered by health institutions over the past three years (and even before)!
For example, we were told:
- that masks were useless against viruses and then they were made compulsory(6) ;
- that rRNA vaccines were safe when there was no data on them(7) ;
- that rRNA vaccines caused no deaths and caused few side effects while the statistics that are starting to come out are alarming(8,9).
When the health system itself produces many lies, citizens will seek answers elsewhere.
Towards recognition of the profession of naturopath?
Moreover, the success of Thierry Casasnovas is linked to his talent, his ability to make things simple, intelligible but also to demand.
Part of the general public wants to treat themselves with natural products and treatments(10).
Most doctors, however, are not interested in it.
To meet this new need, it would be useful to create a profession with recognized skills.
This would allow those who want to become naturopaths to follow an adapted course compatible with the requirements and recommendations of public health authorities.
As long as there is no clear framework for this profession, it will generate avoidable controversies.
Message of hope from Thierry Casasnovas
In his video, Thierry Casasnovas explains that the media who criticize him rely on negative testimonies about him(1).
He believes that they do not take into account the positive opinions and all those who say that the advice of the youtuber has done them good(1).
It seems to me, however, that if it is continued today, it is above all because it has become embarrassing for those who govern us.
He is too influential and he has criticized the management of the health crisis too much to be allowed to continue to express himself freely.(11).
But that’s just my impression.
It is possible that the trial will prove me wrong. We will see.
In the meantime, let me end with the words of the youtubeur who says this:
“Be confident. Cultivate joy, mutual aid and benevolence. Cultivate life. And above all thank you (…)”(1)
I do not believe that he can be attacked for these last injunctions to which I subscribe completely.
Furthermore, whatever happens next, I wish him and his family the best of luck.
Because even if he has resources, it is necessarily a difficult time for him and his loved ones.
Naturally yours,
Augustine of Livois