*A misleading video centred on the claim that flies can spread the coronavirus if they come into contact with infected human faeces is gaining popularity\. Although, this video was recorded and posted by India’s most popular star Amitabh Bachchan the claim is absolutely false\.
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By Nabeela Khan
People in India are widely circulating a video where Bollywood star, cult figure – Amitabh Bacchan shares a message in the video warning people that according to a study by Chinese scientists, the coronavirus can stay alive in human excreta. If a fly sits on the excreta and then on eatables, the disease spreads further.
This video was posted on Twitter along with the message saying, “A study in the @TheLancetshows that coronavirus lingers on human excreta much longer than in respiratory samples. Come on India, we are going to fight this! Use your toilet: हर कोई, हर रोज़, हमेशा । (everyone, every day, always) Darwaza Band toh Beemari Band! @swachhbharat@narendramodi@PMOIndia”
This tweet has been deleted. However, the videois circulating on Whatsapp and social media.
We sift through Lancet research papers and found the study the Bollywood star was referring to was a paper was published in The Lancet Gastroenterol Hepatol Journal 30083-2/fulltext)in which researchers reported results of the presence of the new coronavirus in respiratory and faecal samples.
The researchers collected respiratory and faecal samples from 74 patients infected with COVID-19. Faecal samples from 45% of these patients were negative for the virus but their respiratory swabs tested positive for 15.4 days from the onset of the first symptoms. Of the 55% of patients whose faecal samples tested positive, the respiratory swabs also tested positive for 16.7 days from the onset of the first symptoms. Their faecal samples continued to test positive for 27.9 days after the first symptoms showed.
Thus, patients infected with COVID-19 had the coronavirus in their stools for an average of 11 days more than in their respiratory swabs.
However, this study concludes that the researchers couldn’t find out whether the virus in the stool was still viable and they knew zero cases in which the virus had been transmitted through faecal matter. The researchers outline the need for further research to know about transmission potential.
Off course, the report doesn’t mention transmission of COVID-19 by flies anywhere and it also says, “no cases of transmission via the faecal-oral route have yet been reported for SARS-CoV-2, which might suggest that infection via this route is unlikely in quarantine facilities, in hospital, or while under self-isolation”.
Later, the Indian Health Ministry also clarified that coronavirus does not spread through house flies. Ministry of health and family welfare’s joint secretary, Lav Agarwal said, “I have not seen his tweet, but I can say that this is an infectious disease and does not spread through flies.”
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