Can Black Tea Cure Coronavirus, Here’s The Truth

Covid19 continues to send chills down many sounds as the virus claims over 30,000 lives in the last three months and infecting more than 600,000 globally as of 28th March.

Researchers are yet to figure out its cure and vaccine leaving many to try all kind of remedies some of which have ended fatal.

US President Trump has been fronting the use of chloroquine an anti malarial drug as effective fir the treatment of coronavirus. While this is still under trial, a number of people have taken the risk to try out the drug and a couple is reported to have died in Nigeria and Kansas.

Kenyans more so from the coastal region woke up to a viral message of a supposed relief. Apparently, a natural treatment for scary coronavirus had been found.

In messages that went viral on social media especially on WhatsApp, a theory was being peddled that a baby was born in Coast general and uttered the words “black tea cures coronavirus” while nobody could particularly ascertain this, it was picked up by many as fact. The baby is then said to have died immediately after saying the words. They believe the baby was sent to save the world and died again.

This is far from the truth. This is a hoax story that didn’t even start in Kenya. It has been peddled from Pakistan to India to Sudan, it has been everywhere.

The theory of black tea treating coronavirus has been scientifically debunked.

As for the compounds that are supposed to give tea its curative powers against COVID-19 — methylxanthines are organic compounds found in tea, coffee and chocolate; theophylline is a type of methylxanthine; theobromine works as a bronchodilator (dilates the bronchi in the lungs) to soothe some respiratory symptoms — is present only in black tea in small amounts.

And they do have benefits. Theobromine could lower blood pressure, act as a mild stimulant, and may even help in suppressing a cough. Theophylline has similar benefits as well, like the potential to make breathing easier and improve blood flow. Theophylline is also used to treat asthma – but in much larger amounts than is present in tea. 

But preventing or curing COVID-19 is not something tea can do. In theory, it may ease some of the symptoms, but it can’t fight off the infection or disease itself. There is also no sign of an article by CNN in which they claim it could. 

Also, Dr Li Wenliang is being hailed a hero in China – but for a different reason. In December 2019, he tried to warn medical professionals about a virus similar to SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome). He was asked to stop spreading these “rumours” by the police. He later succumbed to COVID-19.

Only prevention

We have to understand this – there is no cure, medication or vaccine as of now. Once there is, you probably won’t find out about it through a forwarded message but instead from top medical institutions and trustworthy media channels. 

The only way to prevent contraction of the novel coronavirus is to maintain hand hygiene, practise social distancing, coughing in your elbow or a tissue, not touching your face and self-isolating if possible. 

Something to keep in mind

What we all need to remember is that COVID-19 is a very new disease. It takes many years to understand a particular disease and even then there are many aspects of it that could remain a mystery. While research is being conducted at breakneck speed, there is a lot that is unknown at this point. We must not blindly believe any piece of news we come across. Ask and look for the source of the information, run it by fact check accounts – at least google the information you receive as some experts may have already debunked it.

So tell your mum and relatives to go slow and that beyond the nutritional value, there’s nothing much to the black tea, no magic and definitely no baby who spoke immediately after being born.