Experts advise black seed oil as treatment with bird flu

While the medical community monitors the risk of bird flu outbreaks for people, health influences claim that black seed oil – an extract from a bush that grows all over the world – can protect against bird flu. This is not substantiated; Some studies suggest that it can have health benefits, but it is not approved if treatment for every disease, and medical professionals say that it should not replace antiviral medicines.

“This black seed oil is so powerful – 90 percent kills all Aviaire flu virus, called H5N1, known as bird flu,” says Bryan Ardis in an Instagram reel of 3 February.

Different versions of claims that are spread black seed oil on Facebook, Instagram and X, many of which refer to Ardis, who has an online show about health topics. AFP has previously checked Ardis for the distribution of wrong information about Cancer treatments.

The clip of Ardis that Black Seed Oil discussed comes from a video with the alleged benefits of a product that he sells on its website that the SU containsBstance.

The studies coupled under Ardis’s “Bio-Defense” product point For possible benefits of black seed oil in the treatment of various conditions (archived here and here), but experts said that AFP had to be done more research before the herbal formula could be proven as a treatment for bird flu in people.

In the past year, doctors and the poultry industry have kept outbreaks of bird flu who have led to American egg shortages and in some cases spread to dairy cattle.

Dean Blumberg, head of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases division at the University of California, Davis Health (archived here), AFP said in an interview of 24 February That People who work with animals – especially those who come into contact with liquid secretions of birds – are currently running the most risk of bird flu.

Black seed oil, derived from the Nigella Sativa plant found in Asia and elsewhere, is often advertised on the internet as an immune booster and general health treatment (archived here), but Blumberg said that although there are some promising cases and small studies (archived here and here), he would not recommend the supplement to a patient to protect or treat bird flu.

“You really want big studies that really prove that something works before you trust it,” said Blumberg. “If I had bird flu, I would not take anything like that in any way.”

Blumberg preferred double -blind, clinical examinations, of which he said it was not yet performed for black seed oil as a treatment for bird flu and other diseases. AFP could find an investigation into one Small sample of patients in Saudi -Arabia Labeled as a randomized, clinical test that assessed black seed oil on general health and found “promising” results (archived here).

Give priority to ‘proven benefits’

To prevent bird flu, Blumberg advised personal protective equipment (PPE) for people who work with animals to lower the risk of exposure to infected liquids. He also said that although there were human cases of bird flu with unknown origin, most circulating tribes of the virus do not seem typically spread between people.

“It has not yet evolved into an efficiently transferred human-and-human pathogen,” he said.

According to the American Centers for Disease Control, human vaccination against bird flu is not recommended at the moment (archived here). Although Health Canada says that there is a low public risk for the pathogen, it has bought 500,000 doses of GSK vaccines for human birds (archived here).

Blumberg explained that human cases of bird flu can be treated with antiviral medicines such as Tamiflu and supporting care, including additional oxygen if a patient has problems with breathing (archived here and here).

David Cennimo, assistant professor of medicine and pediatrics at the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School (archived here), agreed that even if there is a potential for black seed oil to treat bird flu and other diseases, clear and generally accepted evidence is lacking.

“Some authorities about alternative medicine suggest that robust studies must be carried out,” said Cennimo in an e -mail of 25 February. “I tend to give that approach.”

Cennimo said that he had not found any significant toxicity of black seed oil, but still recommended users to check negative interactions between supplements and prescribed medication.

He also said that common antiviral agents used against the flu had already turned out to be effective against the current tensions of Aviaire Influenza and that he would rather treat someone with medication that has been evaluated in “well -designed studies”.

“I warn individuals not to leave a proven benefit for an uncertain claim about black seed,” he said.

Robert Hopkins, medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Disease in the United States (archived here), also discouraged the use of black seed oil for bird flu and recommended recommended exposure to exposure to animal fluids and consulting a health star for guidance and treatment.

“Scientific studies do not support the use of black seed oil as a treatment for bird flu,” Hopkins said in an e -mail of 25 February. “Antiviral flu medicines such as Oseltamivir, however, are effective in the treatment of bird flu and new vaccines are being developed,” (archived here).

Drug instructions

Health Canada told AFP that black seed oil is a regulated natural health product (NHP) in Canada and that the agency had authorized two formulations that used it in combination with other substances for general health maintenance products (archived here and here). However, it does not recognize black seed oil as a reliable treatment for bird flu.

“Health Canada has not seen any evidence to suggest that black seed oil works to cure diseases such as bird flu, and the department did not receive or authorized the use of an NHP for the treatment of bird flu in humans,” said Mark Johnson, a spokesperson for Health Canada, in e -mail of 25 February.

Johnson said that selling or advertising unauthorized health products in Canada is illegal.

The US Food and Drug Administration has issued at least two warnings to sellers of products with black seed oil about unproven claims that their stock healed, prevented or treated disease (archived here and here).

Read More AFP’s report on health information here.