Use of bleach, garlic, face masks have no effect on coronavirus —Expert

WHEN news broke that a new infectious disease, Coronavirus, was claiming many lives in China, many people had thought it was going to be a China problem. But given the fact that the world is now a global village, it was not long before other countries began to witness the virus. Already, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared it a global emergency.

Reports say the death toll in China alone has reached 636 as of Friday night with over 31,000 cases reported.

However, the dangerous nature of the virus had gripped the social media and expectedly, all sorts of quick-fixes and remedies are being bandied around, including the idea that water extracts of garlic can protect individuals from the virus, among others.

 

 Coronavirus and Corona beer

It might sound like a far-fetched idea, but searches for “coronavirus beer” on the internet had spiked over the last week, an indication of the kinds of questions people have been asking about this health emergency. In fact, some people had thought that a larger beer known as Corona had something to do with the virus.

However, a virologist with the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Oyo State, DrAdeolaFowotade, has said that the virus was so named based on its shape when seen under the microscope.

According to her, the shape of the virus resembles solar corona or a crown when viewed under the electron microscope.

“It is unlike Lassa virus that looks like a worm which has led to people believing that it can easily be killed with table salt solution,” she declared.

 

Salt water and antibiotics

As the supposed treatment with salt gained attention, new additions began to gain ground. One of them was rinsing the nose with saline or mouthwash. Dr Fowotade was emphatic, saying this would neither tackle the problem nor prevent the spread of the coronavirus. According to her, no purpose would be achieved as the use of saltwater will end up doing more harm.

There are also talks about antibiotics preventing or treating the coronavirus. According to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), antibiotics only treat bacterial infections — not viruses like the coronavirus.

“The truth of the matter is that there are no drugs that will protect anyone from coronavirus. Viral infections have their own course and subside on their own.

“But in some places in China, they have found that some antiviral drugs meant for HIV or influenza help to increase the rate of recovery and reduce the chances of mortality associated with the disease,” Dr Fowotade added.

She also added that some recommended precautionary measures to avoid the flu and many other viral infections can also help ward off the coronavirus. She noted that some individuals who come down with symptoms such as fever, cough, or shortness of breath that might indicate they have the coronavirus should avoid contact with others and report promptly to the hospital.

“Early detection is key for any infection including coronavirus. At its mild or moderate form, supportive care to relieve and treat the symptoms can be provided.

“But by the time it becomes severe, it is (often) associated with kidney failure. By the time other organs of the body start to shut down, there is very little that can be done,” she said.

 

Coronavirus can spread through pets

Professor David Olaleye, a physician, while speaking on the virus said although pets like dogs and cats could catch and spread the coronavirus, also known as Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV), however, the possibility of contracting the virus from animals is very low with good hand washing and basic hygiene principles.

According to Professor Olaleye: “The virus does not really survive long outside its host in the tropical environment. Coronavirus has a very thick envelope that is highly susceptible to many cleaning agents, including detergents, toilet soap, bleach, and alcohol-based hand sanitizers. They can easily be killed using these cleaning agents. So, regular hand washing is important.”

Moreover, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has reported that there’s no evidence that coronavirus could infect companion animals, like dogs and cats.

 

Garlic and coronavirus

Taking a bowl of freshly boiled garlic water had also been touted by some social media users as effective recipe by Chinese doctors who claimed that many patients had also endorsed its efficacy. The question however, is: How true is the assertion?

Again, Dr Fowotade said: “The good thing about freshly boiled garlic water is that it will not have any negative effect, but it does not have any protective effect against coronavirus.

“Garlic is an immune booster, there is no doubt about it. However, it does not have antiviral properties. So for viral infections, it cannot inhibit the virus neither can it protect the person against the virus.”

 

Bleach and other solutions

It is obvious that people are ready to experiment with just anything to safeguard themselves from coronavirus attack as they also experiment with bleach and other cleaning solutions.

Though the WHO has said that “bleach/chlorine-based disinfectants, ether solvents, 75 per cent ethanol, peracetic acid and chloroform” are all agents that can kill 2019-nCoV on surfaces, however, it declared that the chemicals are dangerous when people put them on their skins, under their noses, or in their mouths, adding that these have “little or no impact on the virus.”

 

 Nose masks

One of the hottest selling items today in fighting against coronavirus is the face mask. However, this is more of a psychological thing. Though it is certainly a great way to help remain calm in the face of the outbreak, but it will not really help much unless people who are already sick and coughing are putting them on.

For DrFawotade, the use of face masks is rather ironic because they are really not to protect the wearer, but others.

Even the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) does not recommend the use of face masks for the general public to prevent the spread of coronavirus. As for CDC, wearing a mask is not as effective as everyday measures like hand-washing and avoiding close contact with anyone who might be infected.

 

Cocaine and coronavirus

A more bizarre belief about fighting the virus is that cocaine kills coronavirus. Dr Fowotade said there is absolutely no relationship between the two.

“Coronavirus infects the respiratory system and rarely the gastrointestinal system. Cocaine is a neuro-stimulant that acts in the central nervous system,” she stated, while cautioning people to be wary of their sources of information on remedies for the virus.

“You should always double-check your sources. Don’t rely on just one source and look at information coming from other countries so you can understand how this virus is really behaving,” she warned.

 

Letters and packages from China

Given the fear everybody now has over coronavirus, everything from China is now suspect. However, DrFowotade assured that people need not fear letters and packages sent from China since the virus is fragile.

Even the WHO has weighed in on this new dimension of phobia of the coronavirus. It has noted that people receiving post from China are not at risk of catching the new coronavirus because it does not survive for long on objects such as letters or packages.

 

Coronavirus and others

Scientists say that the coronavirus particles are very heavy and usually fall to the ground right around a sick person, rather than lingering in the air. This makes the virus far less contagious than some others, like measles.

Ironically children who are seen as vulnerable have proved rather resilient to coronavirus more than other deadly ones like SARS. In one recent study, a mother with the novel coronavirus reportedly gave birth to a perfectly healthy baby.