A video accompanying a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that taking lemon drops directly into your nose will kill Coronavirus in 5 seconds. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Taking lemon drops into your nose kills Coronavirus.
Fact: There is no scientific evidence to prove that taking lemon drops into your nose can kill the coronavirus that is the reason for COVID-19. According to the World Health Organisation and other credible health institutions, lemon cannot prevent or cure COVID-19. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
According to the National Academies of Sciences Engineering Medicine based in the USA, the acid in lemon juice will not kill coronaviruses in your body. Though lemon contains Vitamin C which is an essential nutrient that is important for overall health, there is no evidence so suggest that lemons protect humans from infections.
Harvard Medical School in its article about the treatments for COVID-19, does not mention anything about the lemon drops used in nostrils. When it comes to Vitamin C, it states that there is no clear or convincing evidence that it works for COVID-19 infections.
According to the World Health Organisation, there is no scientific evidence to suggest that lemon prevents COVID-19. Also, to date, there is no specific medicine recommended to prevent or treat the coronavirus except the vaccines.
The claims regarding lemons have been prominent, made especially recently because a former MP claimed two drops of lemon juice in the nose can increase oxygen saturation levels. The news article regarding which can be seen here. Vijay Sankeshwar, the former MP said “he suggested it to his colleagues whose oxygen levels were low and within half an hour, their oxygen levels rose from 88% to 96%”. He went on to say that 80% of India’s oxygen shortage could be solved by using this remedy. There is no evidence, according to the article, however, of this treatment having any effect on oxygen saturation levels in the blood.
It is true that there are many potential health benefits of lemon juice, like anti-bacterial effects, lowering blood pressure, etc. which can be seen here. But there is no sufficient evidence to suggest that lemons can kill coronavirus or cure COVID-19. Even PIB Fact-check had asserted its finding regarding the video accompanying the post and termed it fake.
To sum it up, there is no scientific evidence to prove that taking lemon drops into your nose can kill coronavirus.
