With a vaccine in sight, the world began to take a sigh of relief, hoping that the pandemic situation will come under control. But we all thought too soon! A newly identified strain of coronavirus left countries puzzled once again. It was the UK government who first announced to have found the “highly contagious new variant of the virus.” The virus have reached in India as well and according to reports, at least 25 people so far have been infected. With the identification of the new strain of the virus, there came confusion, chaos, panic and also a slew of misinformation among the citizens in the country. The most common would be that eating garlic can help prevent the new strain of COVID. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) had busted the fake news is circulating online.

Garlic is healthy food, and it may have some antimicrobial properties. But there is no evidence so far that eating garlic has protected people from the virus. When COVID-19 was first detected, at the time too, many false information and rumours spread online that only made the situation worse. Researchers are still studying the virus and the recently discovered contagious variant as well. In March, the World Health Organisation (WHO) released an official statement stating that there has been no concrete evidence that eating garlic can fend off people from contracting COVID-19.

The new strain of virus also led to rumours and myths. The panic among people has increased, as they are desperately trying to ward off the disease. But spreading misinformation is not the key. UNESCO took to Twitter and busted the false claim that eating garlic can help prevent the new strain of virus. “Garlic may be tasty, but it WON'T protect you from the new #coronavirus. Don't spread rumors. The fight against #COVID19 is also a fight against disinformation,” reads the tweet.

Here's the Tweet:

Garlic in itself is a healthy vegetable with antimicrobial properties, but it certainly won’t protect you from the virus. So far, there has been no proof. Keeping your immune healthy, and following the necessary protocols is the only and best way to contain further spread.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 31, 2020 02:22 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).