Is Ivermectin safe?

Dr. Rhonda Patrick emphasizes that while ivermectin has shown some potential in speeding up viral clearance to a degree, its safety and effectiveness as a treatment for COVID-19 is not well-supported by current evidence. She notes several key points and issues:

1. Sensational Claims: There are no strong data to support the notion that ivermectin is as effective as vaccines in preventing infection or severe disease. Making such grandiose claims can mislead people and hinder scientific interest in studying the drug properly 1.

2. Use of Veterinary Ivermectin: Using veterinary forms of ivermectin, such as horse dewormer, is dangerous due to the vastly different dosages required for animals compared to humans, leading to potential health risks 1.

3. Study Problems: Many studies on ivermectin suffered from issues such as small sample sizes and multiple variables. These factors make it difficult to attribute any observed effects solely to ivermectin. Moreover, aggregated data in meta-analyses, while sometimes necessary, can obscure these issues 2 3.

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     1

     Ivermectin Claims

     01:35:43
     
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     2

     Problems with Ivermectin Studies

     01:31:03
     
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     3

     Ivermectin and COVID-19

     01:28:20
     
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     4

     Ivermectin Controversy

     01:22:32
     

4. Lack of Robust Evidence: There is moderate evidence suggesting some benefit in reducing death rates, but the certainty is low. Additionally, retracted studies due to fraud further complicate the reliability of existing data 4.

In summary, while ivermectin may have some potential, its efficacy and safety are not sufficiently proven, and it should be approached with caution. Researchers should continue to study its effects in a careful, controlled manner without making unsupported claims.