Podcast host Joe Rogan has issued a response to the backlash surrounding his use of Ivermectin — a medication that can be used to treat heartworms in livestock and other animals.
Joe Rogan is one of the most popular podcast hosts on the net, best known for the slew of unique and highly varied guests he invites onto his show, ‘The Joe Rogan Experience.’
In a video uploaded to Instagram on September 1, Rogan revealed that he had tested positive amid the current global health situation… but that fact alone wasn’t what sent the internet into a frenzy.
Instead, it was Rogan’s claims that he was partly treating his medical condition with Ivermectin, a medication used to treat conditions caused by parasitic worms in both humans and animals. It’s important to note that different versions of the product exist for both people and pets, and are only safe for animals when used as prescribed, as told by the FDA.
Joe Rogan sparks outrage on the internet over Ivermectin usage
In his video, Rogan claimed he was using a “kitchen sink” worth of medication to help treat his health condition, Ivermectin among them. This sparked a wave of backlash against the host, with the likes of CNN claiming he’d “spread dangerous misinformation” regarding proper treatment for the issue, among a number of tweets roasting his medical decisions.
A week after his initial announcement, Rogan returned to the studio to discuss the outrage surrounding his September 1 video, claiming that “multiple doctors” had recommended the drug to him.
“What they didn’t highlight was that I got better!” Rogan argued of public perception toward his choices. “They’re trying to make it seem as if I’m doing some wacky s**t that’s completely ineffective, and CNN was saying that I’m ‘a distributor of misinformation.’”
Joe Rogan’s claims of using Ivermectin to treat his illness sent the entire internet to a frenzy – but he’s calling his critics “haters.”
Joe Rogan responds to critics of his medical treatment
Rogan went on to explain that he immediately medicated himself upon learning he was positive over the weekend, and claimed that he was feeling “pretty f**king good” once Monday rolled around, having also taken “high-dose” IV drips of Vitamin C alongside his Ivermectin dosage.
“Because I wasn’t scared… what they would like, is when I did get sick, that I [would get] really sick and get really scared and learn my lesson,” he added. “I bounced back just about as quick as you can. They’re haters. …they’re weak b***es. Stay salty.”
The host’s speedy recovery period and attitude toward his critics has become a hot topic of conversation online, prompting yet another conversation regarding his methods.
The FDA has not approved Ivermectin to treat the illness brought on by the global health crisis, and has stated that taking the drug in large doses is “dangerous.”