Director-General of Ghana Standards Authority (GSA), Professor Alex Dodoo says the Authority does not have scientific evidence to support the use of hydrogen peroxide for Covid-19 treatment or prevention.

Prof. Dodoo who spoke to Newsfile host, Samson Lardy Anyenini on Saturday said the Authority has also not engaged in any testing to ascertain its usefulness.

“Currently as we have it, hydrogen peroxide has not been evaluated. Hydrogen peroxide we all know is a disinfectant. In relation to hydrogen peroxide for its usage in the treatment of Covid-19, we do not have solid scientific evidence,” he said.

His comments follow a press release by the Ghana Medical Association (GMA) indicating that the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Health Ministry (MoH), the World Health Organisation (WHO) have not recommended or approved the use of hydrogen peroxide for the prevention or treatment of Covid-19.

The misuse of the drug could lead to serious physical and undesirable medical consequences, the release stated.

Prof. Dodoo indicated that several reports on hydrogen peroxide are not sufficient to back its usage since the impact of the drug on the human body is unknown.

“The fact that an acid can kill a virus in the test tube doesn't make it a medicine. In its usage, is it useful under all conditions?

“The product is only good when the user derives the expected benefits. For most people, I will urge serious caution,” he added.

He used the platform to encourage scientists to carry out properly evaluated studies under the watch of the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) to determine the use of hydrogen peroxide for Covid-19 treatment.

Prof. Dodoo further admonished renowned personnel in the field of Science to be cautious in advising the public on what should be done amidst the surge in Covid-19 cases.

Meanwhile, Ophthalmologist, Dr. Jesse Pelletier who also spoke on the show opined that the use of hydrogen peroxide may be counterproductive in the long run.

According to him, the mucociliary clearance (a respiratory defensive mechanism) in the nose could be rendered inactive or dormant to fight against bacteria and viruses.

"If you depress this function, whatever enters your nose has more contact time with the epithelial cells and if that is SARS Covid-2, you are likely to have an infection,” he said.

He, therefore, called on all persons to comply with the Covid-19 safety protocols to guarantee their safety.