After a few months of declining cases, the pandemic has swung back in action, thanks to the Delta and Lambda variants, and thanks to the many who have refused to get vaccinated. (Or, arguably worse, use their popular Fox News show to spread misinformation.) One of the common claims against getting dosed is skepticism over the vaccines, which were granted emergency approval from the FDA but not yet full approval. But plenty of people are rolling the dice on other, decidedly less safe treatments. In Mississippi, for instance, a lot of people are taking drugs meant for livestock — and regretting the decision.
As per HuffPost, the state has seen a dramatic rise in calls to poison control centers after many have imbibed ivermectin, which tends to be used to kill parasites in farm animals. This has led a number of public officials to plead with people not to take something intended for cows, horses, and the like.
“Do not use ivermectin products made for animals,” the state’s health department wrote on Facebook on Friday. “Animal doses are not safe for humans.”
State health officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs called humans taking livestock drugs “really kind of crazy” and asked people to “please don’t do that” — especially when a safe and effective and free alternative is available. “You wouldn’t get your chemotherapy at a feed store. You wouldn’t treat your pneumonia with your animal’s medication,” he added. “It can be dangerous to get the wrong doses of medication, especially for something that’s meant for a horse or a cow. It’s really important, if people have medical needs, go through your physician or provider.”
Even the FDA got in on it, begging for some sense of sanity and self-preservation.
You are not a horse. You are not a cow. Seriously, y'all. Stop it. https://t.co/TWb75xYEY4
— U.S. FDA (@US_FDA) August 21, 2021
Of course, if you need someone to tell you, point blank, that “you are not a horse,” you may already be too far gone. Regardless, please get vaccinated.
(Via HuffPost)