Encyclopedia of Opinion
Question
What are the conspiracy theories around COVID-19?
Position6 of 6
COVID-19 can be cured by taking drugs
Argument2 of 3

Cocaine cures COVID-19

Taking the illegal drug, known for its potentially lethal strength, is the only known way to get rid of the virus.

The argument

Cocaine is a powerful drug that is able to radically change the human physical condition. In the same way that it affects breathing, heart rate, personality and self-image, the drug can also eliminate COVID-19 from the human body.

Context

(ALERT: Visit the WHO for accurate information about the coronavirus pandemic) Cocaine, responsible for over 17,000 deaths in the US in 2017, is most well-known as a highly dangerous 'party drug'. However, in February 2020 the Nigerian marketing consultant Bizzle Osikoya, posted a Tweet claiming that taking the drug also had healing properties. Namely, that it could cure coronavirus.

Counter-arguments

As the French government has stated, there is absolutely no proof for this claim. Rather, the poster posted the Tweet to disrupt information flows and obscure the truth. Curing disease is not a side effects of taking cocaine. Its impact is most widely linked to risk of death; violent behaviour; increased heart rate and blood pressure; dilated pupils; extraordinarily high blood pressure and constricted blood vessels. Moreover, there is currently no cure for COVID-19.