Demand for horse medicine ivermectin rises in Canada amid claims it can treat Covid

Feed shops in Canada have seen an increased demand for ivermectin, commonly used to deworm livestock, as it has been touted by some anti-vaxxers as a cure for Covid-19 in humans, CBC News reports.

No clinical studies have proven that the anti-parasitic drug can treat the coronavirus and it has a number of alarming potential side effects for humans, including vomiting, seizures or even death.

The US Food and Drug Administration, which has received several reports of patients who have been hospitalised after they used ivermectin, tweeted: “You are not a horse. You are not a cow. Seriously, y’all. Stop it.”