Ah, if it were only true, let alone this simple: drink water every 15 minutes, and tada! The novel coronavirus gets killed by acid in the stomach. Or, for those of us who love a hot bath, make the temperature even hotter so that the body temperature rises and kills the virus.
We are sorry, say the medical experts, but these tales of water-related virus killers are just that — tales. And tall ones at that.
The time spent at home thanks to Covid-19 has translated into time spent online, and these rumors and false claims have public health officials and experts debunking them on myriad websites. Even the nascent urban legend of the Covid-19 party has been deemed a fraud — but by the old-fashioned, traditional journalism method.
One claim, made in the great unknown, was that drinking water could help eliminate the novel coronavirus in the body. This claim said Japanese doctors recommended drinking water every 15 minutes to wash the virus down the throat and into the stomach, where natural acid would kill it, protecting people from COVID-19. Several posts on Facebook debunked that, saying no such statement ever came from Japan.
Krys Johnson, an assistant professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at Temple University, told Factcheck.org that proper hydration can improve health and support the body’s daily functions, but using drinking water or any liquid to “flush out” the novel coronavirus will not work.
Water consumption “has no bearing on the virus getting into your airways and lungs,” Johnson said. “If you breathe an infected person’s respiratory droplets, the virus will travel through your airways.” Just ”drinking water to ‘rinse’ your digestive track will not prevent you from being infected or from getting sick,” Johnson said.
The World Health Organization (WHO) also is doing its fair share of setting various records straight. It also debunked the claim that drinking water can prevent a coronavirus infection. The agency said that the only way water can help reduce the risk of COVID-19 is by washing hands frequently to remove the virus before touching the mouth, nose or eyes, where the virus can enter the body.
Another COVID-19 myth that recently circulated online suggested that people should take a bath in very hot water to increase body temperature to kill the coronavirus. WHO warned that using extremely hot water can be harmful and has no significant effects on body temperature.
As for the Covid-19 parties, there is no proof that they exist, says The New York Times. The paper reported there was no information regarding the contact tracer for the 30-year-old denier who allegedly attested on his deathbed that he had become a pandemic believer. He reportedly had attended such a party.