This week, the global coronavirus death toll hit 3,000, with cases now reported in every continent except Antarctica.
Now, a hoax has hit social media that claims the virus can be ‘cured’ with pepper.
The hoax appears to have been started by a ‘spiritual activist’ from InksNation and is circulating on Twitter under the hashtag #CureForCoronaVirus.
It claims that coronavirus can be seen as a ‘Pepper Deficient Syndrome’, and indicates that eating pepper soup or the popular Nigerian dish Yoruba stew can protect you.
A letter about the ‘cure’ explains: “The easiest cure for coronavirus is a nice meal or soup rich in pepper e.g. pepper soup, Yoruba stew etc, which African’s are mostly used to already.
“Give a patient suffering from coronavirus hot meals rich in pepper and in less than 24 hours he or she will be fine.”
While pepper has been shown to have antioxidant, detoxification and antimicrobial properties, there is no evidence that it can cure coronavirus.
Speaking to Mirror Online, Dr Babak Ashrafi at UK-based online doctor Zava, said: “Because this strain of coronavirus is new, we don’t have enough data to understand exactly how to treat it yet. Most people will be able to relieve the symptoms at home by traditional means for any viral illness. This might include paracetamol or cough syrup while they fight off the infection - though they’ll need to do this in isolation to avoid infecting others.
“There is no evidence that dietary changes can cure the infection, but fresh peppers are certainly good for you: they’re rich in vitamins C and A, which can help to maintain a healthy immune system.
"Your immune system is important for battling conditions such as coronavirus as it deploys the white blood cells to fight bacteria and viruses within your body. In general I would recommend a balanced diet, getting enough sleep and maintaining an active lifestyle to help you to battle infections more quickly, but unfortunately these measures won’t act as a cure.”
Despite this, the hoax has already been shared several times on Twitter, with many believing the claims.
One user tweeted: “Are we seeing the cure for Corona Virus? This young man came out with a proportion that Pepper will cure the virus since it is related to it..”
Another added: “So apparently there’s a cure for Corona Virus. I don’t know whether to take it seriously.”
And one questioned: “A thing about this #CureForCoronaVirus is that if it's real how will it be prescribed. Will they say take a plate of pepper soup in the morning or what now?”
Unfortunately, this is just one of many coronavirus hoaxes circulating amid the outbreak.
In fact, a recent report revealed that roughly two million tweets have already spread dangerous misinformation and hoaxes about the virus.
To make sure you don’t fall victim to one of these hoaxes, make sure you cross-reference any claims against trusted information from sites including NHS.co.uk and WHO.int.