Was Ivermectin Unfairly Torpedoed as Treatment for COVID-19?

Medication has become the poster child for conflicted scientific, regulatory issues that surround COVID-19

Research into ivermectin suggested it held promise as a treatment for COVID-19, at least until a controversial review deemed otherwise.HJBC/Shutterstock

Controversy seems to surround virtually everything connected with COVID-19: masking, social distancing, vaccines. Amid this quagmire of controversy, one of the most fraught questions has been whether the medication ivermectin is nothing more than dangerous snake oil or is actually a safe and effective treatment for the virus.

‘Horse De-Wormer’

The mainstream media and conventional medical doctors have generally derided ivermectin, referring to it as a “horse de-wormer.” Patients are cautioned against taking it, doctors who are willing to prescribe it report being investigated by their licensing boards and even fired from their jobs. Patients are warned that ivermectin is “dangerous” and “ineffective.”

According to the FDA, it “has not authorized or approved ivermectin for the treatment or prevention of COVID-19 in people or animals. Ivermectin has not been shown to be safe or effective for these indications.”

Safe Antiparasitic

At the same time, ivermectin is a well-known antiparasitic that hundreds of millions of people, mostly in Africa and Asia, have taken since it first became available in 1981, according to research published in the Proceedings of the Japan Academy. It has been especially effective at combating a disease called river blindness, which is caused by Onchocerca volvulus worms and transmitted via blackfly bites.