2 GA Men Drink Disinfectants Attempting To Prevent Coronavirus

ATLANTA, GA — Two Georgia men drank liquid cleaning products over the weekend in an attempt to protect themselves against the new coronavirus, which causes COVID-19, according to the Georgia Poison Center.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the men are expected to recover. Both have a history of psychiatric problems, officials said.

On Thursday, President Donald Trump made a comment during a White House briefing that he wondered whether coronavirus patients could be treated with disinfectant injections, according to the Washington Post.

“I see the disinfectant that knocks it out in a minute, one minute,” he said. “And is there a way we can do something like that by injection inside, or almost a cleaning? Because you see it gets inside the lungs and it does a tremendous number on the lungs, so it would be interesting to check that.”

He said later that comment was meant to be sarcasm.

“I was asking a question sarcastically to reporters like you just to see what would happen,” Trump said.

The poison center’s director, Gaylord Lopez, told the AJC that he didn’t know if the two men consumed the chemicals because they heard Trump’s statement.

The center tweeted a safety reminder Tuesday afternoon: "Cleaners and disinfectants should not be ingested, injected, or used on the skin. Always follow the directions on the product label."

Even before the president’s remarks, at least two other Georgia residents during the pandemic who have gotten sick from similar attempts.

The state has seen its biggest increase in poisonings from people mixing cleaning products and accidentally inhaling the fumes. Last year, the poison center handled 49 product-mixing calls in March and April. This year, since March 1 the center has had 115 calls, Lopez told the AJC.

“When you mix bleach with certain types of chemicals, you produce a reaction that can cause release of noxious and toxic gases, and if you inhale enough of this stuff, you can induce a chemical pneumonia,” he said.

There has been an increase in calls during the coronavirus pandemic, which is why the U.S. Health and Human Services has awarded nearly $5 million to poison centers nationwide to improve response capabilities. The Georgia Poison Center is to receive $148,000.