'I'M NO DOCTOR'
Donald Trump suggests injecting patients with ‘disinfectant’ and using UV light could treat coronavirus
DONALD Trump has suggested injecting patients with ‘disinfectant’ and blasting them with UV light to treat coronavirus.
The was speaking at a White House press briefing following the publication of a study showing that UV light and disinfectants could both kill the on surfaces.
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Earlier in the briefing, medical experts had presented that the virus weakens when exposed to sunlight and heat.
The study also showed that bleach and isopropyl alcohol killed the virus in saliva or respiratory fluids in a matter of minutes.
The president suggested that coronavirus patients could be injected with disinfectants - which are extremely harmful to humans - or exposed to different types of light.
"Supposing we hit the body with a tremendous, whether it's ultraviolet or just very powerful light?" he asked Department of Homeland Security official William Bryan.
"And then I said supposing you brought the light inside the body which you can do either through the skin or in some other way.
"And I think you said you're going to test that too? Sounds interesting."
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Trump continued: "And then I see the disinfectant, where it knocks it out in a minute, one minute, and - is there a way we can do something like that?
"By injection inside or almost a cleaning. As you can see, it gets in the lungs, and it does a tremendous number on the lungs."
He later asked Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator, to look into the suggestion in an awkward exchange.
"I would like you to speak to the medical doctors to see if there's any way that you can apply light and heat to a cure," he said.
"I'm not a doctor. I am a person that has a good [head].
"Deborah have you ever heard of that?"
Dr Birx replied: "Not as a treatment."
Footage from another point in the briefing showed Dr Birx looking towards Bryan and then awkwardly at the ground as the president spoke.
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But the president drew criticism from medical professionals, who took to social media to point out the flaws in his comments.
Robert Reich, a professor of public policy at the University of California at Berkeley and a former secretary of labor, tweeted: “Trump’s briefings are actively endangering the public’s health.
"Boycott the propaganda. Listen to the experts. And please don’t drink disinfectant.”
Physician Daniel Summers wrote: "I am reasonably certain you don’t need a medical degree to suss this out, but in case you need to hear it from a professional: things that are safe and effective outside the body are not necessarily so inside it.
"The inside and outside of your body are different in many ways."
Dr. Kashif Mahmood added: "As a physician, I can't recommend injecting disinfectant into the lungs or using UV radiation inside the body to treat COVID-19.
"Don't take medical advice from Trump."
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A Homeland security official told reporters on Thursday that federal labs aren't considering Trump's treatment options, according to .
The US death toll from the coronavirus was approaching 50,000 at the time of Thursday's press briefing.
Following the briefing, as many users mocked Trump's comments.
And Dettol itself later released a statement .
Dr Fauci says he is 'CONVINCED' second wave of coronavirus will hit the US in the fall as Trump downplays threat
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