Recently, there have been cases of two men getting hospitalized after reportedly consuming disinfectants in the past few days. Health experts are now increasingly worried about people resorting to using different cleaning products as a medication to prevent contracting the COVID-19 virus.
Prior to the incidents, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, had received backlash after passing comments regarding the use of common disinfectants in a similar way.
More specifically, President Trump, during a follow-up meeting with the team overlooking the coronavirus pandemic in the US at the Whitehouse, stated, “I see that disinfectant, where it knocks it out in a minute, one minute.” He added that And is there a way we can do something like that? By injection inside, or almost a cleaning?.”
There were no comments on President Trump’s suggestion by the head of the response of the medical team or any member of the team. However, there was a series of responses from the medical community advising people not to follow the advice from the president.
RELATED: How To Order Food Or Takeaway During COVID-19 Pandemic?
Before President Trump’s suggestion on the use of disinfectants inside the human body, health authorities had already received reports of people drinking different cleaning products in an attempt to stay safe from COVID-19.
Therefore, it is unclear whether the two new cases have any connection with President Trump’s comments on the use of disinfecting products. Experts are also not sure whether the two cases were linked to each other.
The first case, in accordance with the director of the Georgia Poison Centre, Gaylord Lopez, was of a man from the southwest region of Atlanta, who was in his late 50s.
The man had come in himself and claimed to consume around sixteen ounces of the commonly used bleach. He was immediately hospitalized and was transferred to the psychiatric ward after steering clear of any danger.
The very next day after this incident, another case of a man in his late 30s, also from Atlanta reportedly consumed a number of disinfectants and other products such as mouth wash, Pine-Sol, painkillers, and beer. The man was also discharged after treatment.
While the association between the comments of the President and the consumption of harmful disinfectants remains unclear, director Lopez says it is a possibility that the public may have misinterpreted President Trump’s comments.
He explained that President Trump merely questioned the possibility of using disinfectants as a treatment for COVID-19 but people may have taken it as an actual suggestion and acted right on it.
Following the rise in incidents of people consuming bleach and other disinfectants, the manufacturing authorities, the Georgia Poison Centre as well as the Centre for Disease Control and Infection have issued warnings about the use of disinfectants.
In addition, all health authorities have also emphasized being cautious about the combination of certain cleaning products. There have also been cases of poisoning as a result of harmful combinations in the state of Georgia and elsewhere.
A woman had been hospitalized a week ago for toxic exposure from her own kitchen sink while disinfecting groceries using a combination of hot water, vinegar, and bleach. Mixing up bleach and vinegar creates the deadly chlorine gas.
Without proper ventilation, the fumes from such combination and exposure to them can cause significant damage to the health and can even be proven fatal.
Therefore, it is advised to follow the guidelines on disinfecting correctly and use products that can safeguard from COVID-19 but are also safe.
There is a list of disinfectants provided by the Environmental Protection Agency for protection against the coronavirus infection. Disinfectants should only be used for cleaning purposes in appropriate amounts and should not be consumed or used in any other way.
