Will drinking water at intervals of 15 minutes reduce the risk of corona virus?

In the midst of the growing infection of the corona virus, continuous research is also being done on its medicines and vaccines. However, due to the lengthy trial process, the vaccine will take time to market. Along with this, many types of tips related to this deadly virus are also going viral. A claim is also being made on social media that drinking water every 15 minutes will reduce the risk of corona virus to a great extent. Let's know about this, in the message going viral through social media, it is being said that we should always keep our mouth and throat wet and drink water every 15 minutes. Corona virus enters our body in this way. Therefore, by drinking water, the viruses from our esophagus will go down in our stomach and die from the acid produced in the stomach.

Opinion of scientists

Kalpana Sabapathy, an epidemiologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, told BBC Future that it has been generalized, meaning it has been introduced in a more general way. They say that the infection is not caused by a single viral particle, but because of contact with thousands of particles, so cleaning the esophagus alone will not have much effect.

According to Kalpana Sabapathy, the problem with this theory is that it is being claimed to kill the virus only by reaching the stomach. But even before the esophagus, the virus may have entered your body from your nose. Even if this is not the case, the virus can enter through the eyes or other paths. After touching the infected place or surface, the virus will infect you if you touch your eyes. Droplets released from coughing or sneezing of an infected person can also infect you through your breath.

The pH of acidic juices in the stomach is between 1 and 3, with no possibility of the virus dying. In 2012, a virus pathogen from the Corona family came to Saudi Arabia. This virus had the power to resist against mild acids or acids present in the stomach. Scientists had found that the virus can easily attack intestinal cells by surviving in the stomach of patients.

It is not yet clear whether this will apply to this new corona virus as well. Symptoms of diarrhea in the corona virus have also been reported. Chinese scientists have also described the digestive system as a cause of diarrhea. In a report recently, it was also reported that there may be presence of virus in the feces of corona infected patients.

On the other hand, if drinking water is to prevent the risk of infection of corona virus, then no scientific confirmation has been made so far. In a study similar to this, it was investigated whether rinse with water can prevent respiratory infections. A study about this method, which was extremely popular in Japan, found that people who rinse three times a day had a lower risk than those who did not. However, this study on a very small group does not apply to corona virus.

The habit of drinking water is good, this habit does not allow many stomach and skin related diseases, but it has not been scientifically confirmed in the case of preventing corona virus infection. According to experts, it can be dangerous to believe this claim without any confirmation.