A BBC investigation has found several stores in London selling and promoting an Indian herbal remedy called Coronil as offering protection against coronavirus.
In one Wembley shop, Coronil is being advertised as a ‘COVID-19 immunity booster’, according to the BBC, which found at least four other stores claiming that the tablets treat the virus.
In June, Baba Ramdev – founder of multibillion-pound healthcare brand Patanjali Ayurved – asserted that Coronil had cured COVID-19 patients, the BBC reported, quoting him as saying: “Our medicine resulted in 69% of coronavirus patients testing negative after three days and 100% after seven days.”
However, a lab test carried out by Birmingham University for the broadcaster showed that the plant-based product offered no protection against the virus.
Speaking to the BBC, one customer said: “I take it because I’m 78. If I go out shopping, I could catch coronavirus from anybody. That’s why I take it … to protect myself.”
The manufacturer of Coronil has since withdrawn its claim that the product can cure coronavirus, the report says.
The BBC highlights that claims to prevent or treat COVID-19 can’t be made without a product being licensed by the MHRA, which commented: “Appropriate action will be taken where any unauthorized medicinal product is offered or sold on the UK market.”
