Coronavirus: The Infodemic

Fake news about the coronavirus can do real harm. Polygraph.info is spotlighting fact-checks from other reliable sources here.

Daily Debunk

Claim: Study finds that children are "silent super-spreaders" of coronavirus.

Verdict: Not proved by this study.

Read the full story at: Full Fact

Social Media Disinfo

Screenshot

Circulating on social media: Claim that Google search results are evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic is a hoax.

Verdict: False

Read the full story at: R euters

Factual Reads on Coronavirus

Lockdown Let the Earth Breathe. What Do We Do Next?
COVID-19 could be a turning point in climate activism—but only if we play it right.
-- The Walrus. August 24

Is convalescent plasma safe and effective? We answer the major questions about the Covid-19 treatment.
-- Stat, August 23

Long-Haulers Are Redefining COVID-19
Without understanding the lingering illness that some patients experience, we can’t understand the pandemic.
-- The Atlantic, August 19

Evidence lags behind excitement over blood plasma as a coronavirus treatment
Although there have been few data on whether convalescent plasma definitely improves outcomes for people with other diseases, it was logical to test the treatment against COVID-19 when the outbreak began. But researchers have struggled to nail down its effectiveness in the middle of the pandemic, says Michael Joyner, an anaesthesiologist at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
-- Nature, August 19

The ever-expanding list of COVID-19 symptoms
We last wrote about COVID-19 symptoms at the end of April. Since then, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has added several new symptoms of possible infection: congestion, runny nose, nausea or vomiting, and diarrhea.
-- MITMedical, August 11

Without Federal Protections, Farm Workers Risk Coronavirus Infection to Harvest Crops
Farms have already reported outbreaks among hundreds of workers in states that include California, Washington, Florida and Michigan.
-- Kaiser Health News, August 10

Winter is coming: Why America’s window of opportunity to beat back Covid-19 is closing
Unless Americans use the dwindling weeks between now and the onset of “indoor weather” to tamp down transmission in the country, this winter could be Dickensianly bleak, public health experts warn.
-- Stat, August 10

America’s Obesity Epidemic Threatens Effectiveness of Any COVID Vaccine
Scientists know that vaccines engineered to protect the public from influenza, hepatitis B, tetanus and rabies can be less effective in obese adults than in the general population, leaving them more vulnerable to infection and illness. There is little reason to believe, obesity researchers say, that COVID-19 vaccines will be any different.
-- Kaiser Health News, August 6

Watch: Antibodies, immunity, and what they mean for Covid-19, explained
The immune system is no wimp. When pathogens cause illness, it kicks into high gear. Cells work together to tag, kill and gobble up invaders as they fight the infection.
-- Stat, May 5

The race for coronavirus vaccines: a graphical guide
Eight ways in which scientists hope to provide immunity to SARS-CoV-2.
-- Nature, April 28