TOPLINE Online forums selling ivermectin as a Covid-19 therapy have been inundated with memes, sexual material, and pro-trans rights messages, essentially bringing certain communities to a halt as an increasing number of members become alert in their efforts to combat widespread coronavirus disinformation.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
r/ivermectin, a Reddit group devoted to the antiparasitic’s untested and possibly fraudulent promise as a cure and preventive for Covid-19,
has inundated with memes, pro-trans rights postings, and, more often, explicit drawings and tales of people and animals, most commonly horses.
The group was effectively paralyzed by the high number of posts and comments on the subreddit, which skyrocketed from around 40 posts and 300 comments per day to around 1,000 and 10,000 respectively during the last week of August, and the horse problem became so bad that Reddit reclassified the entire group as NSFW (not safe for work).
New groups established to debate the antiparasitic away from the memes and horses have quickly reported in the original group, but they seem to have far stricter posting and commenting limits.
The situation on Reddit is severe, but it indicates that a growing number of people are taking action to combat disinformation on sites such as TikTok, Twitter, and Facebook.
On Twitter, for example, advocates and users of the medication, such as podcast host Joe Rogan, who claimed he was taking ivermectin to treat his Covid-19 infection on Wednesday, and Dr. Pierre Kory, one of the drug’s most famous proponents, often attacked with memes.
After widespread stories of individuals soiling themselves in public after taking ivermectin, Facebook groups that are accessible to the public may flooded with jokes and memes, usually of fecal characters.
IMPORTANT BACKGROUND INFORMATION
For decades, ivermectin has used to treat parasite diseases in humans and animals. It’s a critical, life-saving medication that’s safe when administered correctly, earning its discoverers a Nobel Prize. Early research indicated it could be a viable therapy for Covid-19, but that hasn’t turned out to be the case. Since then, several thorough trials have shown the medication to be ineffective in treating individuals with Covid-19,
and one of the most promising articles supporting the drug’s usage retracted due to suspicions about data manipulation.
Its manufacturer and major pharmaceutical authorities both oppose its use for Covid-19. Ivermectin, on the other hand, has rapidly earned a reputation as a “wonder treatment.”
Throughout the epidemic, it has adopted all over the globe, especially in Latin America, South Africa, the Philippines, and India, as well as by numerous vaccine-resistant populations in the United States. In the United States, veterinarians are the most frequent users of ivermectin,
and an increasing number of individuals are allegedly resorting to more easily accessible animal medication in order to get the drug without a prescription.
Prescriptions for the medication are also on the rise. An apple-flavored edible paste form of the deworming medication for horses has proved especially popular
and is the subject of numerous horse-related jokes. Even if they contain the same active ingredient,
taking medications not intended for human use carries risks. animal medications are not subject to the same safety standards (such as purity)
as human medications, have different, often more potent doses, and may contain harmful additives. In recent weeks, poison control calls from humans using ivermectin intended for animals have increased.
ESSENTIAL QUOTE
Following a rash of reports of people hospitalized after taking ivermectin meant for horses,
the FDA issued an unusual statement reminding the public that “you are not a horse.”
“You are not a cow,” she said, encouraging them to quit self-medicating with a medication designed for animals.
TANGENT
Throughout the pandemic, medical misinformation has been a major issue on tech platforms. After the first two letters typed in the search bar,
Amazon autocomplete responses reportedly highlighted ivermectin in its suggested results, something the company told The Verge it would block. A warning label has also added to relevant searches, linking to the FDA’s ivermectin warning.
According to reports, Facebook’s coronavirus policies haven’t stopped groups or even ads promoting fake cures from flourishing. According to Motherboard, Facebook removes
“content that attempts to buy, sell, donate, or ask for ivermectin,” does not “allow ads promoting ivermectin as a treatment for Covid-19,” and takes action against any group that violates its Covid-19 or vaccine policies, which prohibit making false claims about how to cure or prevent the disease. Reddit has banned r/NoNewNormal Wednesday, an anti-mask and anti-vaccine community, after its lax policies sparked widespread outrage among users.
also source:
Comments 1