Joe Rogan doubles down on unproven ivermectin after bout with COVID-19 – National

Joe Rogan returned from his battle with COVID-19 on Tuesday and began spreading misinformation on his podcast, where he pitches anti-vaccine conspiracy theories and touts ivermectin, an unproven drug. proven to be able to treat coronavirus.

Comedian claims he’s recovered from COVID-19 because ivermectin, an antiparasitic – not an antiviral – has caused a storm of health misinformation in recent months.

Last week, Rogan revealed that he was recovering after testing positive for COVID-19 following a trip to Florida. He claims that he has been treated with “monoclonal antibodies, ivermectin, Z-Pak, prednisone, everything. I also have a drop of NAD drop and a drop of vitamin and I did it three days in a row. “

Monoclonal antibodies are an FDA-approved treatment for COVID-19 that can reduce the severity of the disease. They have been used to treat severe cases of COVID-19, and were given to former US president Donald Trump last year when he contracted the contagion.

But Rogan insisted on Tuesday that it was ivermectin that cured him, without offering concrete evidence. He also issued media reports and public health advice that contradicted his claims.

“They were trying to make it look like I was doing some weird things — it just didn’t work,” says Rogan. “What they don’t highlight is that I’ve gotten better.”

Ivermectin is an antiparasitic drug mainly used to deworm horses. Human-compatible versions of the drug have also been used to control parasites, and one such use won the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2015. Peer-reviewed scientific studies so far To date, no evidence has been found that it can be effective against COVID-19, a disease caused by a virus, not a parasite.

A large pre-print study claiming that ivermectin could be used to treat COVID-19 was withdrawn earlier this summer due to ethical and data issues.

However, Canadian and US health authorities have warned of a surge in interest in the animal version of the thing, as some anti-vaxxers and conspiracy theorists have seen it as an alternative “treatment” to self-medication against COVID-19. Horse dewormers are highly concentrated and can be toxic if ingested by humans.

“The FDA has not authorized or approved ivermectin for use in the prevention or treatment of COVID-19 in humans or animals,” the FDA said on its website, adding that it can be upsetting. vomiting, diarrhea, convulsions, delirium, and even death. “Taking large doses of this drug is very dangerous and can cause serious harm.”

The FDA says: “Never use animal drugs on yourself or others.

In a case described by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a man ingested an injectable form of ivermectin intended for cattle. He had hallucinations, confusion, tremors and other side effects 9 days before his admission.

Pharmacists are allowed to prescribe ivermectin tablets to treat helminths in humans, the FDA said. A topical version of the drug can also be used to treat head lice or skin conditions such as rosacea.

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Saskatoon pharmacist’s warning about using Ivermectin to treat COVID-19

The World Health Organization (WHO), National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other health experts have also recommended against using ivermectin against COVID-19 outside of carefully controlled patient studies. .

An NIH panel found “insufficient evidence” for or against the COVID-19 drug, calling for larger, better-designed trials.

An analysis of 14 different studies also found no evidence that it works, although the data is limited and researchers say more research is needed.

Rogan said his doctor prescribed him ivermectin and he received a safe human version of it from Dr Pierre Kory, who pushed the drug up. The Joe Rogan Experience in the past. Kory is a co-founder of the Front Line COVID-19 Critical Care Alliance (FLCCC), a group that is actively promoting ivermectin online.

Kory has stated that he is being “censored” after a journal rejected his article on ivermectin due to several unsupported claims. The journal said in March: “In our view, this paper makes no balanced and objective scientific contribution.

Rogan also perjured on his show that Japan approved ivermectin to treat COVID-19. He appeared to be referring to comments made by Haruo Ozaki, President of the Tokyo Medical Association, which has no say in Japanese government decisions.

Ozaki said there isn’t enough evidence to prove that ivermectin works or doesn’t work, but he cautiously suggested it was worth a try due to the COVID-19 “crisis”, AFP reported.

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Despite health warnings, horse medicine is still being purchased to treat COVID-19

Rogan has been skeptical of COVID-19 treatments in the past, and has suggested that young and healthy people don’t need vaccines.

The 54-year-old revisited his vaccine skepticism on Tuesday, showing no evidence that governments are trying to push vaccines into their populations.

“You know, there’s a lot of speculation,” he said. “One of the speculations concerns emergency use authorization for vaccines. That, in order to get emergency use authorization, no treatment is required.”

The Pfizer vaccine is no longer authorized for emergency use. It was fully approved by the FDA last month.

Rogan also suggested that pharmaceutical companies are trying to suppress ivermectin to make more money without presenting evidence. “This is a big conspiracy,” he said.

Ivermectin is manufactured by Merck, one of the 10 richest pharmaceutical companies in the world. In February, Merck said there was “no scientific basis” for its use of the drug against COVID-19. It also cited “regarding the lack of safety data in the majority of studies” involving patients with ivermectin and COVID-19.

The hype surrounding ivermectin echoes a similar story that happened last year about hydroxychloroquine, another unproven treatment that has become popular among conspiracy theorists and some Republicans. , including Donald Trump.

The NIH is currently studying ivermectin in a large trial comparing half a dozen established drugs to see if they have any effect on COVID-19.

– With files from the Associated Press