Mike Adams
- X: @HealthRanger
- Status: Alive
- Role: Independent media founder, author, publisher, and lab director. Founder of Natural News and the Brighteon video platform; director of CWC Labs; daily podcaster and commentator.
Background
Michael Allen "Mike" Adams, widely known as the Health Ranger, was born in 1967 in Lawrence, Kansas. By his own account, he developed type 2 diabetes around age 30 and says he reversed it through changes to his nutrition and lifestyle, an experience he credits with sparking his interest in holistic nutrition, raw foods, and skepticism of conventional Western medicine. He describes himself as a polymath, holistic nutritionist, organic gardener, prepper, and analytical scientist, and holds two U.S. patents — one for "Cesium Eliminator" and one for "Heavy Metals Defense."
Career, Businesses, and Platforms
Adams built a media and e-commerce presence centered on alternative health and "health freedom":
- NaturalNews.com — high-traffic alternative-health news site (launched circa 2005–2008) publishing on natural health, food safety, and critiques of mainstream medicine and pharmaceutical companies. In 2025 it launched an AI chatbot called "Enoch."
- HealthRangerStore.com — online retailer of lab-tested foods, superfoods, supplements, and storable foods marketed as verified for contaminants.
- CWC Labs — an ISO-accredited analytical laboratory he directs, specializing in mass-spectrometry testing for heavy metals, pesticides, herbicides, and microbiology in food and supplements.
- Brighteon.com — a free-speech video platform he founded as a YouTube alternative after being deplatformed, where he hosts his daily "Situation Update" / Health Ranger Report podcast. He reports redistributing profits to support other independent media outlets.
- Books — Food Forensics, which reached #1 in science books on Amazon, plus works on survival nutrition.
He describes his work as pro-liberty, pro-America, and focused on exposing contaminants, censorship, and corporate and government overreach.
Deplatforming and "Ex-Account" History
Adams and Natural News have been removed or restricted from multiple major platforms over the years — including a YouTube channel termination in 2018, a Facebook page ban in 2019, a temporary delisting of many pages from Google search in 2017, and restrictions on Twitter/X at various times. His prominent X account has been described as an "ex-account" because earlier iterations faced suspension during periods of stricter platform enforcement. Following platform-policy changes after 2022, an active blue-verified @HealthRanger account exists today with roughly 387,500 followers. Adams characterizes these actions as censorship for his views on vaccines, pharmaceuticals, and related topics.
Controversies (Attributed)
Natural News and Adams have drawn substantial criticism from scientists, medical professionals, and fact-checkers, who have described the site as promoting anti-vaccination content, conspiracy theories, and pseudoscience. Watchdog outlets such as Quackwatch and science commentators have argued that his content discourages evidence-based treatment. A widely condemned 2014 Natural News article on GMOs was reported to imply a "moral right" to violence against GMO supporters; Adams has denied creating any related "hit lists." These are contested characterizations rather than adjudicated findings; supporters view him as a censored figure exposing real issues around food contaminants and regulatory capture. Readers should consult primary sources (NaturalNews.com, Brighteon.com, his X account) alongside critical sources for a full picture.
Bonhoeffer Criteria Scores (1–10)
See the Bonhoeffer Criteria for full criterion definitions.
| # | Criterion | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Articulates the blocker | 7 |
| 2 | Speaks out publicly | 9 |
| 3 | Understands the situation | — |
| 4 | Will not shut up | 9 |
| 5 | Calls out US intel-service problems | 7 |
| 6 | Calls out foreign influence on US politicians | 6 |
| 7 | Calls out captured US politicians | 7 |
| 8 | Calls out intel-service-caused deaths of Americans | 6 |
| 9 | Ethics first | 7 |
| 10 | Cannot be bought | 7 |
| 11 | Executive experience | 8 |
| 12 | Willing to criticize Israel publicly | 7 |
| 13 | Worked in government | 1 |
| 14 | Active political voice on social media | 9 |
| 15 | Economic / macroeconomic literacy | 6 |
Notes
Founded and runs independent media and lab infrastructure (Natural News, Brighteon, CWC Labs, HealthRangerStore) — a clear executive track record built entirely outside mainstream platforms. Has been deplatformed multiple times across YouTube, Facebook, Google, and Twitter/X and rebuilt each time, demonstrating a sustained pattern of speech under real cost. He has no government or elected-office background, which is reflected in the low score for criterion 13. Some of his content is contested by scientists and fact-checkers; that uncertainty is reflected in criterion 3 being held pending fuller public-record review rather than assigned a definitive score.