THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Health experts have criticised the state government’s decision to distribute a homoeopathy drug to students though studies showed that the medicine has proved ineffective against Covid. According to Dr U Nandakumar Nair, chairman of Campaign Against Pseudo Science Using Law and Ethics (CAPSULE), no schools should distribute homoeopathy products for Covid till there is proper evidence on its effectiveness. Instead, children should be encouraged to adopt proven disease preventive measures.
The government recently decided to give Arsenicum album 30 CH, a homoeopathy drug, to students as a preventive drug against Covid for 21 days. “We are yet to administer Covid vaccines on children, despite its effectiveness, due to lack of specific studies. There is a need to get informed consent from children when a product is distributed as a medicine,” said a statement from CAPSULE which is a public health collective of the Kerala Sasthra Sahitya Parishad.
It maintained distributing a product that failed to be effective will affect the scientific temperament of children. The AYUSH ministry had listed Arsenicum album among other drugs as a preventive and prophylatic remedies against Covid prompting state units of the IMA and Indian Academy of Paediatrics to flay decision.