Virus: Half of what you hear is wrong

For supposedly smart and well-educated people, Americans fall for a wide variety of misinformation about the coronavirus.

The bad data can come from friends and relatives, or — especially — social media.

Let’s be myth busters today. The facts are drawn from a wide variety of sources, from the World Health Organization to Johns Hopkins University. 

Oh — just when you got comfortable calling it coronavirus, or COVID-19, or Chinese Virus, scientists have devised a new name — SARS-CoV-2.

Quite a mouthful that I don’t think will catch on in the media.

Let’s look at the myths.

A cure. Right now, there is none and no proven medicine for slowing it down, although some existing medicines are being tested. Developing a safe and effective vaccine will take many months. Amazon has removed about 1 million items that promised to treat or even cure COVID-19.

You can catch it by eating Chinese food. No more so than eating Kentucky Fried Chicken or pasta.

It’s on items shipped from China. Highly unlikely. The illness is most likely transmitted by droplets from an infected person’s sneeze or cough. It can live on different surfaces for different lengths of time. Good idea to wipe down anything you have shipped to your home. 

Gargle for protection. You cannot protect yourself by swallowing or gargling with bleach, taking acetic acid or steroids, or using essential oils, salt water, ethanol or other substances.

Alcohol will kill the virus. More likely it will kill you. 

The young are safe. The young can be infected just like any other age group, but the impact might be less severe.

Old people who catch it die. A minority will die, the majority will not. 

Black people are immune. No, the melanin in their skin does not protect them.

Get a home testing kit. On March 20, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration warned it has not authorized any at-home tests for COVID-19.

Face masks protect you. No, say the experts, but I would wear one if I had one.

Garlic will save you. Garlic has many benefits. Warding off COVID-19 is not one of them.

Flu vaccine. It has no effect on coronavirus.

Rinsing your nose with saline helps prevent infection. There is no evidence that rinsing the nose with saline has any positive effect.

Spraying alcohol or chlorine all over your body will kill COVID-19. If the virus already is in your body this does no good, and it will not prevent the virus from entering.

Groups under 10 are fine. Wrong. The smaller the group, the better, but no group is safe.

Heat will kill the virus. From the evidence so far, the COVID-19 is at home in hot and humid weather. Having a very hot bath wouldn’t do much either. Except make you clean.

Pets carry the virus. It may have come from animals, but your pets do not carry it. (Good idea not to eat your pets.)

Hand dryers kill the virus. No, they don’t. Other ineffective home remedies include vitamin C, essential oils, silver colloid, sesame oil, fish tank cleaner, and sipping water every 15 minutes.

The virus will die off  in the spring. Not likely. Some viruses, such as cold and flu viruses, do spread more easily in the colder months, but that does not mean that they stop entirely when conditions become milder. 

Coronavirus is the deadliest virus known to man. Although it is more serious than influenza, it is not the deadliest virus. Others, such as Ebola, have higher mortality rates.

It is a hoax. No, it is not a hoax.

The best protection (which you should know by now): Wash your hands frequently and thoroughly, using soap and hot water.

Avoid close contact with people who are sick, sneezing, or coughing. Actually, avoid close contact with anyone. 

Avoid spreading your own germs by coughing into the crook of your elbow and staying home when you are sick.

Stay safe.