Myths and Misconceptions on COVID19 Cures

Mike Sonko

Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko hit the headlines worldwide when he included bottles of Hennessy in his donation packages to vulnerable Kenyan families living in informal settlements. Sonko claimed the drink would protect the consumer from Coronavirus because it was a “throat sanitizer.”The local Hennessy distributors refuted these claims and instead urged people to continue washing their hands regularly with soap and water or hydro-alcoholic gels, wearing face masks, practicing social distancing and staying at home. A WHO fact sheet states that consuming alcohol doesn't destroy the virus, and its consumption is likely to increase the health risks of a person if they become infected with the virus. Alcohol (at a concentration of at least 60% by volume) works as a disinfectant on one’s skin, but it has no such effect within the system when ingested.

Kenya - Turkana 

Some residents of Turkana County believe that cow urine can ward off Coronavirus. They say it's a suitable disinfectant which they have no option but to use because the nearest water sources are sometimes as far away as 100kms. Using cow urine is in line with an age old tradition which, the County Governor Josephat Nanok, says has been instrumental in disinfecting cows’ udders and teats before milking. In Kenya using cow urine stops at the hands, while in India the urine ends up in the belly. Many in India consider them as sacred and believe that cow urine has medicinal properties. Drinking therefore is a remedy to ailments such as arthritis, asthma, cancer, diabetes and now Coronavirus. Researchers, scientists and doctors however refute these claims saying there is no known proof that cow urine kills the virus.

Pastor Nganga

Controversial Pastor James Ng’ang’a of the Neno Evangelism Centre has previously claimed that he can treat the novel coronavirus if he was given a chance by government. He said all he needed was a guitar to strum while singing a healing song. Ng'ang'a further claimed he didn't need PPEs to interact with covid19 patients, "Ladies and gentlemen this coronavirus should not disturb you. If I was allowed by the Kenyan or world government, I would ask that covid-19 positive patients be brought to me. I would then lock myself inside a room with them. The only condition would be that they would have to believe in Christ."

President Pombe Maghufuli

In Tanzania, President Pombe Maghufuli initially was preaching a similar gospel. Pombe declared three days for national prayers to defeat Coronavirus in early April 2020. People were encouraged to congregate in churches and mosques to defeat the satanic virus through divine intervention thus flouting the universal guidelines against large gatherings. The cases there have since shot up prompting the U.S. embassy in Tanzania to issue a warning to its citizens on evidence pointing to exponential growth of the epidemic and hospitals in Dar es Salaam being overwhelmed with COVID-19 cases. The number of positive cases stands at 509 with 183 recoveries and 21 deaths although these figures have been disputed by opposition politicians and activists who say the government is concealing the true number of deaths linked to Covid-19 by burying deceased patients at night in Dar es Salaam and Arusha. The last update from the government was April 29th, reinforcing fears that it is hiding the true scale of infections.

President Maghufuli further claimed that his son contracted the coronavirus and treated himself with lemons and ginger. Ginger is a healthy food that may have some antimicrobial properties. However, there is no evidence from the current outbreak that consuming it has protected people from the new coronavirus. Likewise, lemon and lime contain high amounts of vitamin C. But there is no evidence to support the claim that they flush the virus out of an infected person’s system.

Malaysia 

Mixing religion and health matters can be a recipe for disaster as proven in the case of a mosque in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia which became the hotspot for COVID-19 where a 34 year old man on a mass pilgrimage, and who later succumbed to the virus, unknowingly spread it to hundreds that were also present there. Two thirds of Malaysia’s cases emanated from the religious meeting at that time. The gathering had 16,000 people, among them 1,500 foreigners. If Malaysia had been as quick to shut down mosques as her neighbor Singapore, perhaps this would have been avoided.

South Korea

Another case is that of the infamous South Korean patient 31 who has since been dubbed the super spreader, checked into a small Daegu hospital after a minor traffic accident. The next day, she complained of a sore throat. She attended church service but checked into hospital again after developing a fever the following day, one that lingered. She managed to slip out the following Sunday to go to church again. Between first entering the hospital and finally being confirmed positive for COVID-19, Patient 31 had stepped out on at least four different occasions. From a buffet restaurant to a Korean-style public bath and then to church twice, coming into contact with some 1,160 people. The positive cases spiked with 64% being attributed to her attending Shincheonji church service which boasts of 230,000 members. Before she came along the cases in the country had stabilized and a sense of normalcy had begun to set in after patient 30.

Kenya - 5G Network

In Kenya there were claims linking 5G network to the coronavirus pandemic. The first theory argued that since Wuhan, China had rolled out its 5G network, the coronavirus had emanated from there. The second theory was that COVID-19 was manufactured in a Wuhan lab and was being spread through their 5G networks. It has since been established that Wuhan was one of the 16 Chinese cities to debut 5G. This led to vandalism of some phone masts, setting others on fire and harassed engineers laying fibre-optic cables in the UK. Viruses cannot travel on radio waves/mobile networks. COVID-19 is spreading in many countries that do not have 5G mobile networks. COVID-19 is spread through respiratory droplets when an infected person coughs, sneezes or speaks. People can also be infected by touching a contaminated surface and then their eyes, mouth or nose.

 

Africans Not Affected by COVID 19 

At the onset of the coronavirus pandemic which was ravaging the East before moving West, there was a myth that black people couldn't get the virus. It was even a subject of debate in numerous media outlets but time has since shelved that myth since most of the African countries not only have positive cases which are increasing by the day but fatalities as well. This is a clear sign that the disease does not discriminate any race. There is also no scientific evidence that African blood composition can prevent Africans from contracting the disease.

Weather

Another myth was that COVID-19 couldn't spread in warm sunny weather and thus couldn't survive in Africa’s hot and humid conditions. Getting out into the sunshine, if you can, is still a good idea as this helps your body produce vitamin D which is important for your immune system. COVID-19 can survive temperatures higher than 25C. Therefore one can catch it no matter how sunny and warm it is.

These are the kind of 'interventions' and unproven homespun remedies that are frustrating scientists and doctors in fight against COVID-19. WHO recommends the following measures to reduce the risk of contracting Coronavirus. Avoiding close contact with those already sick, washing hands properly with soap and water for 20 seconds, staying at home if one is sick and avoiding touching of eyes, nose, or mouth to avoid infection. People are also encouraged to wear a face mask in public places, sneeze into a tissue and disposing it off properly, sneezing into the crook of the elbow and using standard cleaning sprays and wipes to disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.

In case one develops a fever or cough, this could be a sign of COVID-19. Most people have mild illness and are able to recover at home. If you have traveled to high risk countries or regions or were in close contact with someone with COVID-19 or think you may have been exposed to COVID-19, contact your health care provider immediately. Keep track of your symptoms and in case of an emergency warning sign (including trouble breathing), get immediate medical attention.