Here are the States Most Searching for the Unproven Covid ‘Cure’ Ivermectin

By Daniel G. Barnes Last updated Sep 3, 2021

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Top line

Interest in ivermectin, an antiparasitic drug falsely touted as a cure for Covid-19, has skyrocketed in the United States alongside the increase in coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths, with research online for doping of the drug – as well as calls for poison control from people taking animal versions of the drug, especially in those conditions.

Ivermectin is not recommended as a treatment or prevention for Covid-19.

Highlights

google trends The data The past twelve months show a sharp increase in searches in the United States for “ivermectin” starting to increase around mid-July and peaking in interest during the last week of August and the first week of September.

The top five states searching for “ivermectin” – relative to the number of overall searches in that state – during this period were, in descending order: Oklahoma, Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana, States with some of the lowest vaccination rates. in the countryside.

Data from the past seven days points to a similar, albeit changing, picture with Oregon, Oklahoma and Arkansas, respectively, the three states seeking the most drug and Idaho coming in fifth.

Hawaii â€” the state with the third the highest proportion (74%) of people who received at least one vaccination shot – was a notable exception, having the fourth highest proportion of web searches for ivermectin of any state.

Google Shopping research data from the past seven days underscores widespread interest in obtaining the drug to treat or prevent Covid-19 although it is not approved for this purpose and searches have increased the most in the United States. low immunization coverage – although Hawaii is still an exception to this rule. and had the most searches for the term “ivermectin,” followed by Oklahoma, Wyoming, Arkansas, and North Dakota.

There has also been a general increase in related queries on Google Shopping over the past seven days, including ‘Ivermectin Coronavirus’ and ‘Ivermectin Apple Paste’, an apparently popular product for horses. , which both jumped 250% nationally, and â€œivermectin covid 19 treatment,â€ which jumped 170%.

What to watch out for

While the Food and Drug Administration said Ivermectin should not be used to treat or prevent Covid-19, it is authorized for human use in the United States to treat certain parasitic infestations and rosacea. Despite this warning, prescriptions for the drug have skyrocketed. Experts are more concerned with those looking for the drug who cannot get a prescription, however, many would turn to more readily available products for livestock, according to regulators, poison control centers and hospital staff. Pet supply stores report unprecedented demand for the drug. Google Shopping research data from last week highlights efforts to secure the drug, with terms asking for human dosage, various animal products (usually various formulations or pastes for cows or horses) and obtaining a prescription ranging from 40 to 100%. With a growing number of people looking for ivermectin for animals – which does not undergo the rigorous control of human drugs, is potentially much stronger and could contain harmful additives – already in trouble hospitals could face an increase in the number of patients who have unintentionally overdosed.

Tangent

Global interest in ivermectin has started to turn to the United States, according to Google search data. During most of the pandemic, searches for the drug have been popular in countries like South Africa, Namibia and Slovakia. Slovak government promotes the drug and black markets have emerged in Namibia and South Africa to meet demand. More recent data, especially in the past month, shows a growing – and now dominant – proportion of global searches for the pest control originating from the United States

Surprising fact

U.S. research linking ivermectin and the 2015 Nobel Prize rose by more than 1,000% last week. The drug indeed earned its discoverers the Nobel Prize 2015, something that features prominently in the literature of people promoting the drug for use against Covid-19 online. The prize, however, was not for its apparent usefulness against Covid-19. The award committee commended the discoverers for providing “powerful new means for mankind to combat … the debilitating diseases that affect hundreds of millions of people each year” caused by parasites. Other Nobel Prize-winning innovations that have also not been proven to help fight Covid-19 have not received similar levels of enthusiasm as ivermectin. In 1949, Antonio Egas Moniz share the prize for its development of the lobotomy, a controversial – and now discredited – surgical procedure to cut parts of the brain in the hope of curing mental illness.

Key context

Ivermectin has shown great promise as a treatment for Covid-19. These have not been confirmed and many rigorous studies undertaken since then have repeatedly determined that the drug is no advantage in to treat people with Covid-19. One of the most promising articles supporting the use of the drug has been took of on data manipulation issues. Neither his maker or first medications regulators approve its use for Covid-19 and actively advise against it. Despite this, ivermectin quickly gained a reputation for “miracle cureâ€And has been adopted around the world throughout the pandemic, particularly in Latin America, South Africa, the Philippines and in India and by many generally vaccine resistant groups in the United States. As with many issues related to the pandemic, misinformation online is rife. Ivermectin is no exception, and major platforms like Amazon, Reddit and Facebook have all taken action to resolve the issues reported on their respective platforms.