Fact Check: Did the US say 5G radiation causes COVID-19

Since the outbreak of COVID-19 there have been plenty of conspiracy theories about the spread of the virus. Most of them have however been debunked

New Delhi, Feb 04: Since the outbreak of COVID-19, conspiracy theories have spread like wildfire.

Take a look at this article titled, "US Government Admits 5G Radiation Causes COVID-19." Many tweeted the article with captions such as 'stunning admission.

The article went on to claim that the government has finally admitted that 5G radiation is not only connected to COVID-19, but it induces the body to create new viruses and illness. The article alleges that the US government made these revelations in a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the National Institute of Health, which is responsible for the biomedical and public health research in the US.

The article appeared on newspunch.com. The article featured an image of National Institute of Allergy Infectious Diseases, Antony Fauci. It also had a tweet of the NIH account that read, "exposure to 5G radiation can induce COVID-19 in humans."
OneIndia has learnt that the NIH has not published such report linking 5G and COVID-19.

Our search results did not lead to any such claim or announcement on the official accounts of the NIH. The scientific paper that the article refers to while making the claim also did not contain any such information on COVID-19 and 5G. Moreover such a research paper does not exist even.

A paper by Beverly Rubik and Robert R Brown aimed to explore evidence about a possible relationship between radio-frequency radiation and COVID-19.

In conclusion, the paper said, "none of the observations discussed here prove this linkage. Specifically, the evidence does not confirm causation." It further added, "Clearly Covid-19 occurs in regions with little wireless communication. Furthermore, the relative morbidity caused by Wireless Communications Radiation (WCR) exposure in Covid-19 is unknown."

In this context one must also note that the viral claim has been debunked by the UICEF and full fact.org. The World Health Organisation clarified and said, "unlike ionising radiation such as X-rays or gamma rays, the electromagnetic fields created by mobile networks such as 5G can "neither break chemical bonds nor cause ionisation in the human body."

COVID-19 and 5G technology are two different issues which have been a subject mater of discussion and speculation in recent times. There is no evidence to support the claim that the two are linked. The WHO has said that the viruses including COVID-19 do not travel on radio waves or mobile networks. In conclusion, COVID-19 and 5G are not connected and people must only rely on credible and evidence-based information on such matters.