Fact-check: Pune's steam bar claims to treat or prevent COVID-19; it does neither

COVID-19 pandemic might have everyone on edge. People constantly watching over their shoulders, fearing they might contract the virus. A lot of remedies have come to the fore with the promise of preventing coronavirus infection - that's beside the scientifically-proven precautions of maintaining social distancing and personal hygiene and wearing a face mask. But the pandemic has also given birth to some ridiculous ideas to prevent or cure COVID-19.

After anti-coronavirus soap, air freshener, mattress and whatnot, a new idea is born with the promise of curing and preventing coronavirus. A Twitter user shared a video of a steam bar, where people are sitting in a line and taking steam through a long pipe. People are inhaling the steam and it's unclear if there are any medicines in the mix.

Fact-check

As the video went viral on social media, a lot of users were quick to point out the so-called steam bar or inhalers are a sham and that it does not prevent or cure COVID-19. But people appear to be queuing up to inhale the steam in hopes of keeping the virus at bay.

There's no scientific evidence to support that inhaling steam can prevent or cure COVID-19. Steam inhalation is an effective way to clear nasal or respiratory passages when a person is suffering from cold or flu. But it does not cure any infection, even as basic as common cold. Steam inhalation also doesn't replicate the function of a ventilator or oxygen inhaling machine to increase body saturation.

If anyone claims to cure or prevent COVID-19 through steam inhalation, it is false and baseless.