At the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in Peru, chlorine dioxide was touted as a miracle cure for the coronavirus. If an investigation has just been launched to find out more about it, you should know that this bleach derivative generally poses serious risks to human health.
Since the appearance of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, many "miracle solutions" have sprung up here and there around the world. The craziest example surely comes from India where a therapy based on cow dung is currently all the rage. On the side of Peru, we rather appreciate a derivative of bleach:chlorine dioxide. However, this toxic product if ingested and inhaled is generally used as a disinfectant as well as in the bleaching of paper and fabrics.
As VICE US explains in an article from May 15, 2021, members of the Peruvian congress passed a rather incredible motion. Indeed, there is talk of setting up a committee managed by the Ministry of Health whose mission will be to hear scientists and other experts. The latter should provide information on the potential positive effects chlorine dioxide on Covid-19 patients.
The fact is that doctors had already explained that chlorine dioxide was ineffective against the coronavirus and that this could have deadly consequences. Nevertheless, Posemoscrowte Chagua of the extremist Union for Peru party is behind this congressional motion. According to him, the scientific community is misinforming about chlorine dioxide.
Remember in passing that the context in Peru is particularly difficult. Indeed, it is the country with the highest death rate Covid-19 per capita. Critics say the country's politicians are fueling misinformation and therefore running counter to science. This attitude has the effect, in particular, of sabotaging the efforts made within the framework of the response to the coronavirus.
For Samuel Cosmé, secretary general of the Society of Intensive Care Specialists of Peru, the situation in the country is deplorable. He also condemned the recent decision of the congress having already had to treat patients whose condition had worsened after the consumption of chlorine dioxide. Finally, remember that the local political class has also supported the use of hydroxychloroquine, which is well known in France, as well as ivermectin, an antiparasitic that treats scabies in particular.
