Study Links ChatGPT Diet Advice To Rare Case Of Bromide Toxicity

A case study in the Annals of Internal Medicine has raised concerns about relying on ChatGPT for medical guidance.

The journal reported that a 60-year-old man developed bromism—a rare condition linked to bromide toxicity—after changing his diet based on information obtained from the chatbot.

Bromism, common in the early 20th century, was once linked to nearly 10% of psychiatric admissions.

The man, concerned about sodium chloride’s harms, asked ChatGPT how to remove chloride from his diet and spent three months replacing it with sodium bromide—once a sedative and noted mainly for non-dietary uses like cleaning.

The University of Washington authors said they couldn’t verify the patient’s ChatGPT exchange, but when they asked the same question, the chatbot suggested bromide without a health warning or follow-up questions.

The article warned that AI tools can produce inaccuracies, fail to question context, and potentially spread misinformation, leading to preventable health risks.