Featured Image Credit: Getty Images/Theo Wargo
Topics: Health, Social Media, Instagram, New York
Jen Thomas
Topics: Health, Social Media, Instagram, New York
There's a big cliché about people loving a man in uniform, but the accompanying imagery isn't usually scrubs or a white coat.
That changed back in 2015, when People magazine bestowed the honor of 'the sexiest doctor alive' to Mikhail Varshavski, also known as Doctor Mike.
He soon became one of the most famous doctors in the world, using social media for good and to raise awareness about health conditions.
Back when he was awarded the title, he wrote on Instagram: "Wow 'Sexiest Doctor Alive' is a pretty hefty title! Thanks to peoplemag! Extremely humbled by such a title and excited for the opportunity to spread my message."
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One fan joked about the New York doctor: "I would make myself ill to see him," as others swooned in the comments.
Here's what he looked like in 2016:
Some people get all the luck (and good looks).
He now has almost five million followers on Instagram, and a whopping 14 million YouTube subscribers, where he used his fame to educate people about their health.
He told Forbes: “My job is to provide the most up-to-date information that I feel confident about to my audience, in a way that resonates with them. I trust that my audience will be able to make the best decisions for themselves.”
Born in Russia, he moved to the US at just six years old, and was inspired in his career choice by his father who was a physician.
"I fell in love with the field, and I realized this is the only thing I want to do for the rest of my life," he told Fox News.
"My father decided to pursue medical education, yet again, in a new country, in a new language for the second time in his life, bless his heart."
Dr Mike's fame started when in August 2015, BuzzFeed wrote an article titled 'Um, You Really Need To See This Hot Doctor And His Dog', featuring a compilation of pics of him and his beloved pet.
The People award then followed in November of that year, and the rest is history.
He says at first he wasn't sure what to make of the attention, and says his thoughts were: "This isn't the attention I'm trying to get. I would like to educate people. I want to celebrate healthcare. I wanna put good information out there."
"At a time where patients' first instinct is to look at their phones, I wanted to be there for them," he said of his YouTube channel's success.
"I can't tell you how much joy it brings me to have a child who's nervous to go the doctor face light up because it's the doctor that they saw on YouTube."
He posts videos on everything from nutrition, to improving sleep, to debunking claims you might have seen on late night infomercials.
His hero status was confirmed in 2019 when he saved a passenger on a flight.
While travelling from New York City’s JFK to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, a passenger became seriously unwell with anaphylactic shock.
He explained to the New York Post: “We were facing a real dilemma, over the ocean with a patient in a life-threatening situation."
“While the plane was not equipped with an EpiPen, luckily the Delta team did have an advanced life support kit which included the epinephrine," he explained.
Dr Mike had to adjust the dosage and figure out how to administer it without the pen, eventually giving it in 'his leg muscle - that for sure hurt but was the best option, had we left the situation to deteriorate, we would have risked having to open his airways with an incision.”
The patient added: "Dr. Mike was able to use what was on board to help me, and he stayed with me and monitored my vitals for the rest of the flight. All I can say is how thankful I am. He really saved me.”