Juana Garcia/The Cougar
Despite many people flocking to buy Ivermectin, the medicine has not been proven to treat COVID-19 and can actually cause dangerous side effects. People shouldn’t be taking this medication for coronavirus.
As the pandemic goes on, people have jumped from one strange treatment to another. First, there was hydroxychloroquine, an antimalarial drug that Trump tried to boost early in the pandemic. A few small studies showed the drug might have some benefit in COVID-19 patients, but later on it became clear the drug wasn’t consistently effective.
Trump urged people to try the drug causing the FDA to send out a warning about how the drug could cause heart problems. It was only, at that moment, supposed to be used in controlled trials.
Ivermectin is a drug used to treat people that have parasites, such as worms. There have been some clinical trials using Ivermectin to treat COVID-19, but there isn’t enough evidence to prove its effectiveness.
There have been studies where the drug eliminates COVID-19 cells in a lab setting. However, the amount used is much higher than what is approved for humans by the FDA. Additionally, a petri dish is much different than the human body.
The study may show some progress, but it’s not an invitation to self-treat with Ivermectin for COVID-19.
That has not stopped people in the least. Many conservatives like Alex Jones, Joe Rogan and numerous Fox News hosts have promoted Ivermectin.
While it’s inexpensive, Ivermectin needs a prescription. Since most doctors won’t prescribe an anti-parasite medication for a virus, many people have been turning to buy the livestock form of Ivermectin.
Ivermectin, in addition to being used on humans, can also be used on animals. Many people use it to deworm horses. The animal medication has the same idea but it comes in a much higher dose since horses are much bigger than humans.
Because of the higher dose, there are side effects that come for humans. Side effects include dizziness, nausea, low blood pressure, seizures and even death. People can overdose on the drug, according to the FDA.
Despite the warnings the FDA released about taking animal Ivermectin, people still want it. So people have been flocking to feed stores to buy up all the tubes. Stores are facing shortages due to people mass purchasing this medication.
Now people who want to deworm their hoses can’t even find the needed medication to do so. Meanwhile, people are risking their lives by taking unapproved doses of a substance.
People shouldn’t be risking their health to try a medicine not even made for humans. The most effective treatment out there for COVID-19 is the vaccine. So if people are worried, they should get vaccinated.
Ironically, many people promoting Ivermectin also are denying the efficacy of the vaccine. They are denying science and encouraging dangerous behavior.
Science has proven the vaccine is the best thing for COVID-19. Leave the dewormer to the horses.
