Published 13:37 IST, March 26th 2020
Fact Check: Did Dr Li Wenliang find a tea cure for coronavirus?
Here is a fact check regarding the rumour that was spread across all social media about whether drinking tea is the cure for coronavirus. Is this fake or true?
While the coronavirus is slowly spreading across the countries in the world, there are also many rumours flying around with regards to coronavirus. There are many rumours about how can it be cured as well. A recent rumour that has been making rounds on the internet is that Dr Li Wenliang, the doctor in China who first broke the news to the world about COVID-19, suggested that drinking tea three times a day will help beat coronavirus.
What is the rumour about a tea cure for coronavirus?
Claim:
The message that is being shared on Twitter, Facebook as well as Whatsapp is that Dr Li Wenliang had casefiles regarding coronavirus which came out after he passed away. These case files reportedly claim that the chemicals Methylxanthine, Theobromine and Theophylline will help in the simulation of compounds that will ward off the virus. These three are found in a cup of tea and thus one must drink tea three times a day. It also claimed that the hospital staff in Wuhan, China are also drinking tea three times a day.
As per an article in a leading daily, the post has been making rounds on all social media. Below are the Facebook as well as Whatsapp forwards of the message. The rumour was spread under the name of CNN.
Source: Facebook, Whatsapp
Rating:
The Google Trends of this news show that people have been searching for tea cure for coronavirus since March 19. These searches shot up on March 24 at 5.30 am in the morning. This shows that people are getting curious about whether this news is fake or true. People are also searching for the name of Dr Li Wenliang as well.
Source: Google Trends
Fact Check! The rumour is false!
The interview of Dr Li Wenliang by a leading news portal has no mention of a coronavirus tea cure as claimed by another leading daily. One other important aspect to consider is that Dr Li Wenliang is an ophthalmologist. Ophthalmologists specialise in eye and vision care. A simple Google search of the CNN website shows that there are no such case files by Dr Wenliang. Thus, this rumour is fake.
There is no cure for COVID-19 yet
It is very important to note that there is no cure for coronavirus yet. As per the official website of the World Health Organization, there is no vaccine or cure available for Coronavirus. Social distancing is one of the most important aspects that will help one to be safe from COVID-19.
Updated 13:27 IST, March 26th 2020