'I'm not a doctor': Trump riffs on findings that heat and sun weaken coronavirus

'I'm not a doctor': Trump riffs on findings that heat and sun weaken coronavirus

After U.S. government researchers determined that the coronavirus loses potency when temperatures and humidity rise, Trump threw out the idea for "medical doctors to see if there's any way that you can apply light and heat to a cure."

The coronavirus appears to weaken more quickly when exposed to sunlight, heat and humidity, a U.S. official said on Thursday in a potential sign that the pandemic could become less contagious in summer months.

U.S. government researchers have determined that the virus survives best indoors and in dry conditions, and loses potency when temperatures and humidity rise - and especially when it is exposed to sunlight, said William Bryan, acting head of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate." The findings could bolster hopes that the coronavirus will mimic the behavior of other respiratory diseases like influenza, which typically are less contagious in warm weather.

But the coronavirus has also proven lethal in warm-weather places like Singapore, raising broader questions about the impact of environmental factors.

President Donald Trump said on Thursday the findings should be interpreted cautiously.

But added, "I would like you to speak to the medical doctors to see if there's any way that you can apply light and heat to a cure."