Avoiding Fake Coronavirus Health Advice Online – 7 Things You Need to Know

5. Drinkable silver

The idea that silver can be drinkable sounds insane, and you would be correct. There are some occasional uses of silver in healthcare, for example in bandages applied to wounds, but that doesn’t mean it’s effective to consume.

‘Drinkable silver’ or colloidal silver are tiny particles of the metal suspended in liquid. It has been long claimed to have antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal properties and it helps the immune system. However, there is currently no evidence that colloidal silver has any of these health benefits.

Unlike iron or zinc, silver is not a metal that has any function in the human body. The US health authorities have warned it could cause serious side effects including kidney damage, seizures and argyria – a condition that makes your skin turn blue.

Despite these warnings, many “medical freedom” groups, those who are deeply suspicious of mainstream medical advice, have been promoting this liquid on Facebook. Thankfully for the general public, their posts now generate a pop-up warning from Facebook’s fact-checking service.

The promoting of this shiny snake oil has not just been limited to social media as US televangelist Jim Bakker has been encouraging the viewers of his TV show to use it to fight Covid-19. One guest on his show even claimed the solution kills some strains of coronavirus within 12 hours whilst simultaneously admitting it hadn’t yet been tested on Covid-19.