Perhaps you’ve heard of the potential cure for COVID-19 currently under study, Chloroquine. Chloroquine is an anti-malarial drug that has been in use since the 1970s. Taken at high doses or in tandem with certain medications, Chloroquine is very dangerous; it can cause heart attacks. At low, doctor-approved doses however, it is a safe treatment given for malaria, autoimmune diseases, and lupus. The real question is if it’s the miracle cure we all desperately hope it is.
COVID-19 is a virus; this means its function is to copy itself and spread. In order to copy itself and spread, it must bind itself to a human cell. The cell, recognizing an intruder, will try to kill the virus by saturating it in acid. Unfortunately, this only helps the virus. Theoretically, Chloroquine helps delay the spread of the virus in the human body by raising the pH value of the cell pocket the virus attaches to. In layman’s terms, Chloroquine keeps the cell from releasing the acid that helps the virus grow.
So how accurate is this hypothesis about the interaction between COVID-19 and Chloroquine? So far, there have been petri dish studies that show coating a cell in Chloroquine can help it from getting infected in the first place. So there’s that – a step in the right direction if you will. However, no studies have yet reached human trials, so it will likely be anywhere from 6months to a year before a viable cure is found.
Stay safe, wash hands for at least 20 seconds, stay 6 to 10 feet away from everyone and wash high used areas several times a day to help stop the spread.