Ivermectin is tired. The new hotness among some anti-vaxxers is to gargle with the antiseptic Betadine, the iodine-based solution commonly used by physicians to disinfect the skin before surgery. From Rolling Stone:
"Don't get Covid. Prophylaxis is not that hard," one person touting themselves as an ER doctor tweeted in a post that racked up almost 300 shares, along with a photo of various supplements, including melatonin and vitamin D (none of which have been proven to effectively prevent against Covid-19). "Also nasal spray with a couple of drops betadine in it. And gargle with original Listerine."
Another poster on Facebook wrote, "Gargling, nasal spray and eye drops with 1 percent providone iodine (betadine) results in dramatically better outcomes with Covid infections. I do this every time I've been exposed." This particular poster cites a 2020 paper written by a Bangladeshi plastic surgeon, one of several that investigates this question, to support this view. But there have been no human studies on the use of Betadine to treat COVID-19, just hypotheses and lab studies, says Dr. Michael Mrozinski, a family physician based in Australia.
When asked if gargling the stuff could reduce or prevent COVID-19, Mrozinski said, ""Fuck no."
(Thanks, Bob Pescovitz!)
image: http://malahov-plus.com/ – http://malahov-plus.com/uploads/forum/images/1290034689.jpg (FAL)
