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Barbara O'Neill, an Australian naturopath, was banned in Australia for spreading misinformation about health and providing dangerous advice to vulnerable patients. O'Neill, who lacks any recognised qualifications in health care, has long advocated for unconventional health practices, often promoting ideas that contradict established medical knowledge. In September 2019, the New South Wales Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC) issued a Permanent Prohibition Order against her, preventing her from providing health services or education in any capacity across multiple Australian states. The decision followed numerous complaints about her dubious and dangerous health claims regarding cancer treatment, infant nutrition, antibiotics, and vaccinations. Despite the ban, O'Neill continues to promote her ideas and has a significant online following.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name | Barbara O'Neill |
| Occupation | Naturopath, health educator, nutritionist, author |
| Reason for ban | Spreading dangerous misinformation about health, including cancer treatment, infant nutrition, antibiotics, and vaccinations |
| Year of ban | 2019 |
| Jurisdiction | New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, and South Australia |
| Status | Still banned as of 2025, but continues to promote her ideas and provide services outside of Australia |
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What You'll Learn
Barbara O'Neill's lack of qualifications
Barbara O'Neill, born on 28 July 1953, is an Australian alternative healthcare promoter and author. She has gained notoriety for promoting natural therapies and wellness practices, with many of her claims criticised as unsupported and dangerous. O'Neill has authored several books on health and wellness, including 'Self Heal by Design' and 'Sustain Me'. She has also published books with dangerous claims and advice, such as telling those with cancer to forego chemotherapy for bicarbonate of soda.
O'Neill has no recognised qualifications in health care and did not complete her nursing training. She has been criticised for spreading misinformation, particularly on serious health issues like cancer treatment and infant nutrition. She has made several unsupported claims, such as discouraging the use of antibiotics, promoting the disproven claim that they cause cancer, and telling pregnant women that antibiotics are unnecessary for Strep B. She has also recommended unsafe substitutes for breastfeeding, such as unpasteurised goat milk.
O'Neill's lack of qualifications and dissemination of dangerous advice led to her being banned from providing health-related services in Australia in 2019. The New South Wales Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC) issued a Permanent Prohibition Order, preventing her from delivering health education or services across multiple Australian states. The Commission emphasised that even online presentations would be considered a breach of her ban.
Despite the ban, O'Neill has continued to promote her ideas through various platforms and remains active in advertising her alternative health practices. She has a significant online following, with her lectures and videos viewed by hundreds of thousands of people.
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Her cancer cure claims
Barbara O'Neill, an Australian alternative health care promoter, has been banned in Australia for spreading dangerous misinformation about health. She has been known to promote natural therapies and wellness practices, although her claims have been criticised as unsupported. O'Neill has authored several books on health and wellness, including Self Heal by Design and Sustain Me. She has also published several books on health and nutrition that include dangerous claims and advice.
O'Neill has long advocated for unconventional health practices, often promoting ideas that have drawn significant criticism from medical authorities. She has no recognised qualifications and did not finish nursing training. She has been married to Michael O'Neill, the founder of the now-defunct Informed Medical Options Party, an anti-vaccination and anti-fluoride political group.
O'Neill's cancer cure claims include the following:
- In her YouTube videos, O'Neill discourages the use of antibiotics, promoting the disproven claim that they cause cancer.
- She told pregnant women it was unnecessary to take antibiotics for Strep B, claiming that no baby had ever died from catching Strep B at birth. However, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists' statistics show that 14% of newborns who contract early-onset Strep B die, and that antibiotics can reduce this risk by 80%.
- O'Neill recommended that parents who were unable to breastfeed their infants use substitutes besides formula, such as unpasteurised goat milk and a mix of almond milk with dates or bananas. Professor Jane Scott, co-author of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) infant feeding guidelines, stated that this advice is "definitely not safe" and that "there is a real danger here for infants as these will not support healthy growth and development".
- O'Neill told the Commission that she was not giving clients advice but merely providing them with information. She said that she couldn't cure cancer but could teach people and give the body the right conditions to heal itself.
- O'Neill provided dangerous advice to vulnerable patients, telling those with cancer to forego prescribed chemotherapy for bicarbonate of soda.
- O'Neill claimed that sodium bicarbonate could cure cancer.
- O'Neill charged clients as much as A$2,450 per person for a one-week stay at her health retreat, Misty Mountain Health Retreat, and up to A$8,800 for two people for two weeks. She claimed to provide detox services aiding recovery from cancer, among other ailments.
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Her stance on antibiotics
Barbara O'Neill, an Australian alternative health care promoter, has been banned in Australia for spreading misinformation and dangerous advice about health. O'Neill has no recognised qualifications in health care and did not complete her nursing training. Despite this, she has positioned herself as a health educator and lecturer since 2004 and has gained a huge following.
O'Neill has long advocated for unconventional health practices and has made several claims about antibiotics that contradict established medical knowledge. In several of her YouTube videos, she discourages the use of antibiotics, promoting the disproven claim that they cause cancer. She has also told pregnant women that it is unnecessary to take antibiotics for Strep B, claiming that no baby has ever died from catching Strep B at birth. However, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists' statistics show that 14% of newborns who contract early-onset Strep B die, and that antibiotics can reduce this risk by 80%.
O'Neill's stance on antibiotics is just one example of her controversial views on health and wellness. She has also made dangerous claims about cancer treatment, recommending that patients forego prescribed chemotherapy in favour of bicarbonate of soda. She has also promoted natural therapies and wellness practices that are not supported by medical evidence. For example, she has told parents who are unable to breastfeed their infants to use substitutes such as unpasteurised goat's milk, almond milk, and dates or bananas. Professor Jane Scott, a co-author of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) infant feeding guidelines, has stated that this advice is "definitely not safe" and can put infants at risk.
In 2019, the New South Wales Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC) banned O'Neill from providing any health-related services or education in Australia, citing that her activities posed a risk to public health and safety. The ban applies across multiple Australian states, including New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, and South Australia. Despite the ban, O'Neill has continued to promote her ideas through various platforms, including online presentations and speaking engagements overseas.
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Her views on infant nutrition
Barbara O'Neill, an Australian alternative health care promoter, has been banned from providing health services or education in Australia. The ban was issued by the New South Wales Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC) in September 2019, following numerous complaints about her dangerous and unsupported health advice. O'Neill has no recognised qualifications in health care and her teachings have been described as misinformation.
One area where her advice was particularly controversial was infant nutrition. O'Neill made several claims and recommendations that contradicted established medical knowledge and were deemed unsafe by experts. For example, she recommended against the use of antibiotics for Strep B in pregnant women, claiming that no baby had ever died from catching Strep B at birth. However, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists' statistics show that Strep B has a fatality rate of 14% in newborns, and this risk can be reduced by up to 80% with antibiotics. Professor Jane Scott, an expert in infant feeding, has stated that O'Neill's advice on this matter is "definitely not safe" and puts infants at risk.
O'Neill also promoted unconventional alternatives to infant formula for parents who were unable to breastfeed. Her suggested substitutes included unpasteurised goat milk and a mix of almond milk with dates or bananas. These alternatives were deemed unsafe and inadequate for supporting the healthy growth and development of infants. In addition to her advice on Strep B and infant formula alternatives, O'Neill also made other controversial statements about infant health and nutrition. She claimed that children could be naturally vaccinated against tetanus by following certain lifestyle habits such as drinking plenty of water, getting enough sleep, avoiding junk food, and exercising.
O'Neill's claims and recommendations regarding infant nutrition were not supported by scientific evidence and were contradicted by established medical guidelines. As a result, the HCCC's prohibition order prevented her from providing any health-related services or education, including online presentations and lectures, across multiple Australian states. Despite the ban, O'Neill has continued to promote her ideas through various platforms and remains active in the alternative health community.
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Her association with Misty Mountain Health Retreat
Barbara O'Neill, a former Australian naturopath, author, and educator, was banned from providing health services in Australia due to her association with the Misty Mountain Health Retreat. O'Neill and her husband, Michael O'Neill, were the founders of this health retreat, which was the subject of numerous complaints and investigations.
The Misty Mountain Health Retreat, also known as the Misty Mountain Aboriginal Healing Place and the Misty Mountain Health and Education Institute, was a charity affiliated with Barbara O'Neill. The retreat offered live-in health centres in New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland, catering to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and those with chronic and terminal illnesses. It received government grants and tax concessions due to its status as an Acnc-registered health promotion charity.
However, the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (ACNC) received multiple complaints about the retreat. The complaints centred around the dangerous and misleading health advice provided by Barbara O'Neill, particularly to vulnerable individuals. The Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC) investigated and found that O'Neill had breached the Code of Conduct for Unregistered Health Practitioners. As a result, she was banned from providing any health services, whether paid or voluntary, in Australia.
The HCCC investigation revealed that O'Neill's health lectures, promoted by the Misty Mountain Health Retreat, included harmful recommendations. She advised against vaccination, conventional cancer treatments, and proper infant feeding guidelines. Her lectures and consultations included telling cancer patients that they could cure their cancer, which she described as a fungus, with bicarbonate soda instead of undergoing chemotherapy. She also claimed that no baby had ever died from catching Strep B at birth, when in fact, there is a known fatality rate that can be significantly reduced with antibiotics.
In addition to the health advice provided by Barbara O'Neill, the Misty Mountain Health Retreat was also scrutinised for its finances. The charity's expenses included substantial loans for a Hyundai excavator and an Isuzu truck, as well as offering clients helicopter rides. The retreat's profits had also significantly decreased from the previous year, raising questions about its financial management.
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Frequently asked questions
Barbara O'Neill was banned in Australia for spreading misinformation about health and promoting unsupported health practices that posed risks to public health.
Barbara O'Neill has no recognised qualifications in health care and did not complete her nursing training. She has made several unsupported claims, including discouraging the use of antibiotics, promoting the disproven claim that they cause cancer, and telling pregnant women it is unnecessary to take antibiotics for Strep B.
On 24 September 2019, the New South Wales Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC) banned Barbara O'Neill from providing health-related services or education in any capacity, across multiple Australian states. Despite the ban, O'Neill has continued to promote her ideas through various platforms and conduct health retreats in New Zealand and the United States.
