IRRATIONAL FEAR

Some news could make you more afraid or untrustworthy of
people around you—making you afraid to go places you need
to go. One popular post circulating the internet claimed that
there were 15 confirmed cases of coronavirus at Metropolis
in Metrotown, and this was proven to be false. Posts like
these can incite fear in people who were at this mall recently
and might make them believe that they or members of

their family have the illness. It may also make people fearful
of going to the mall even if they need to go to pick up
prescriptions, groceries, or other necessities. Posts like this
cause tons of unnecessary stress to the public.

There was another internet rumour about ibuprofen
not being safe to take as it can worsen the effects of
coronavirus. However, there was a lot of controversy around
this claim as there is a lack of evidence suggesting a link
between the pain reliever and effects of the illness. The
WHO even cleared the air about this on their Twitter, saying
that they do not recommend against the use of it. These
lies could influence people who need to regularly take these
supplements as prescribed by their doctors to stop taking
them in fear of getting infected—and possibly make them
worse. In turn, more people could get sick from not taking
their medicine because of misinformation—and this is the
last thing hospitals and doctors should have to deal with at
this time.

FALSE HOPE OR NO
HOPE AT ALL

Some of these posts depict animals coming back to places
where humans once dominated. Many say mother nature
and animals are taking the earth back since many people
are staying inside because of quarantines. While these
stories of fish and dolphins coming back to Venice river or
elephants coming into towns and getting drunk and falling
asleep in gardens may be seen as cute or positive—they’ve
been debunked. These stories serve as a fearmongering, or
rather “joy-mongering” to dramatize the impact of humans

 

on the environment and ultimately provides a false sense

of happiness or hope that there is something good about

this virus or us having to stay quarantined. What's the harm

in news that makes you happy, even if it is fake? It is always
good to have a positive perspective, but false hope is exactly
that—it’s false. Lies that mask the truth are harmful because
the truth is necessary for a smart and meaningful perspective
on the world.

Also circulating the internet is a bunch of fake “cures”
for the coronavirus including things like avoiding dairy,
eating citrus, or gargling warm salt water—or that there is
already a cure for the virus, which is untrue. While these
things might be good to ease the pain of a common
cold or flu, they are definitely not good measurements
people should be taking if they think they have COVID-19.
Furthermore, if people believe there is a cure for
coronavirus, they may not take the social distancing and
isolation warnings as seriously as they should and possibly
infect people who are at risk.

DO | HAVE IT?
WHAT SHOULD 1 DO IF | GET IT?
PREVENT SPREADING IT

Many social media sites have now taken precautions to
stop the spread of misinformation, but we can't always
rely on the internet. So, how do you know news you see
on the internet is false? And how can you stop it? First,
dont believe everything you read on social media. If you
see a post about coronavirus that looks like it was typed
into a notepad and screenshotted, it's probably not a
legitimate source and it should be fact-checked. (In theory,
all information should be fact-checked against multiple
sources.) More importantly, don't share it unless it is backed
up by another reliable source.

Some reliable sources to look at currently are
the WHO, Centre for Disease Control (CDC), or the
Government of Canada. It’s also essential to note that the
things listed in this article are the fake claims made about
coronavirus up until the date of publication. There will
always be more info coming out as the situation changes,
so it's important to be vigilant about consuming the facts on
COVID-19.