Miracle Treatments Profiting from Covid-19 Pandemic Misinformation: Chlorine Dioxide |Biomedgrid

During the COVID-19 pandemic, chlorine dioxide was promoted as a treatment, although health authorities worldwide had warned about the adverse effects of this compound which is a bleaching product and biocide, not recommended for human consumption. In this work, we surveyed 932 individuals, about chlorine dioxide consumption and the knowledge about its adverse effects. We found that 11.6 % of the participants consume chlorine dioxide, of which 4.4 % do it regularly. 74.0 % of the consumers began during the COVID-19 pandemic. 59.2 % of consumers have experienced at least one adverse effect. All the participants recognize hepatic lesions as the main adverse effect. 10.2 % of the health personnel surveyed consumed Chlorine dioxide and recommended it to their patients. To date, there is no scientific evidence or clinical trial that supports the use of chlorine dioxide as a preventive or therapeutic agent against COVID-19 or other diseases. It is important to alert the population about the fatal consequences of consuming miracle products like chlorine dioxide.