States Report Spike in Poison Control Calls After Trump's Comments About Injecting Disinfectant
Bryan also said bleach and other disinfectants like isopropyl alcohol have been shown to kill the virus in saliva and other respiratory fluids — “with no manipulation, no rubbing, just spraying it on and letting it go. You rub it and it goes away even faster.”
After Trump's comments, Reckitt Benckiser, the makers of Lysol, put out a statement imploring people not to use their products as a treatment.
“As a global leader in health and hygiene products, we must be clear that under no circumstance should our disinfectant products be administered into the human body (through injection, ingestion or any other route),” the company said. “As with all products, our disinfectant and hygiene products should only be used as intended and in line with usage guidelines.”
Disinfectants such as Lysol or bleach are toxic, and ingesting or injecting them can be fatal.
The American Chemistry Council also released a statement on Friday saying that chlorine bleach “should never be administered inside the body under any circumstances.”
“Chlorine bleach and other disinfectants should never be ingested or injected into the body to treat infections such as COVID-19. Such a practice could be lethal or cause serious bodily harm,” they said.
Trump’s comments also prompted responses from doctors, who urge against trying to treat COVID-19 with disinfectants.
“My concern is that people will die. People will think this is a good idea,” Dr. Craig Spencer, director of global health in emergency medicine at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center, told The Washington Post. “This is not willy-nilly, off-the-cuff, maybe-this-will-work advice. This is dangerous.”
“This notion of injecting or ingesting any type of cleansing product into the body is irresponsible and it’s dangerous,” Dr. Vin Gupta, a pulmonologist and global health policy expert, told NBC News. “It’s a common method that people utilize when they want to kill themselves.”
The White House has since responded to the controversy, claiming that Trump's comments were being taken “out of context."
“President Trump has repeatedly said that Americans should consult with medical doctors regarding coronavirus treatment, a point that he emphasized again during yesterday’s briefing,” press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, said in a statement on Friday. “Leave it to the media to irresponsibly take President Trump out of context and run with negative headlines.”
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