Regular mouthwashes may help destroy coronavirus, study suggests

Regular, over-the-counter mouthwashes have shown "promising signs" of killing the COVID-19 coronavirus in saliva, scientists at Cardiff University in Wales have found.
The study discovered that mouthwashes containing at least 0.07 percent cetylpyridinium chloride destroyed the virus within 30 seconds of being exposed to it in a lab. The report hasn't been peer reviewed, and the next step is to see if mouthwashes are as effective as they are in patients as they were in the lab setting. Results from a clinical trial at the University Hospital of Wales are expected next year.
While the news is encouraging, it seems likely mouthwashing would be an addition to preventative measures like hand washing, social distancing, and mask-wearing, as opposed to a treatment since the liquid would not be able to reach the respiratory tract or the lungs, BBC News notes.
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The results come after another study also found CPC-based mouthwashes to be effective in reducing viral load, reports BBC. Read more at BBC News and take a look at the study's findings here.
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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
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