Ben Carson draws attention over talk of ‘glyconutrients’ in pledge program

It’s not often that a public television pledge program ends up in press coverage of a presidential campaign. "The Missing Link: The Science of Brain Health", a 2014 show featuring neurosurgeon Dr Ben Carson and distributed by Arizona PBS, came under scrutiny when reporters discovered that Dr Carson, now a leading Republican presidential hopeful, suggested that viewers might find “glyconutrients” helpful. The word is used in advertising by Mannatech, a supplement company. Mannatech paid $5 million in fines in 2009, according to the Texas Attorney General’s office, to settle a false advertising lawsuit after claiming its glyconutrient products cure cancer and other ailments. Dr Carson uses and has publicly praised Mannatech’s glyconutrient supplements, although the pledge special, presented by Arizona PBS, does not name the company. He also discusses glyconutrients in an interview on a related pledge premium DVD, Healthy Brain Tips with Dr Ben Carson.