Experts warn against 'dangerous' potato juice health fad

A new health fad that has taken over TikTok has been slammed by experts as "dangerous."

The "hack" involves drinking potato juice which someone claimed clears up strep throat within 2-3 days after knocking back 6-8 ounces of raw potato juicy daily, describing it as a "natural remedy."

While another woman also made a similar video (that has since been deleted) where she said her teenage daughter's strep throat was "cured" naturally through following advice on TikTok to juice a potato - "It [step throat] was completely gone within two hours," she added.

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Now, Dr Idz (@dr_idz) has weighed in to warn people not to use this as a cure for strep throat - reacting to the woman's TikTok, he described it as “one of the most dangerous videos I’ve ever been sent."

“Do not treat your child with potato juice if they have severe throat symptoms,” Dr. Idz added.

“If a potato juice seems to ease the sore throat, symptom relief does not mean the bacterial infection is dead.".

Instead he advised those with strep throat to go on the conventional route for treatment and avoid listening to advice from people that aren't medical experts.

“If your child has strep throat, get it treated quickly and properly. Don’t listen to these quacks online.”

He explained that strep throat is "quite a common childhood infection," as around 30 per cent of kids who have a sore throat have it.

As it is "very contagious," strep throat is often spread by being in close contact, with it causing flu-like symptoms, rapid onset swelling, sore throat, body aches, rash and enlarge lymph nodes.

Dr Idz warned "it can be very serious if it [the illness] spreads elsewhere in the body," as it can cause a type of kidney disease, rheumatic fever and "long term damage" that weakens the valves between the heart chambers "which can kill you."

Another doctor on TikTok, Dr Rubin, pediatrician practicing in Chicago, commented on the video sharing similar frustrations with the misinformation online.

"I posted a video on this mainly yelling because it makes me to angry to see people get away with making this stuff up," he wrote.

In his own video on the matter, Dr Rubin said: "'There's no substantial evidence potatoes treats strep throat. Antibiotics treat strep throat."

While potatoes are rich in fiber, vitamins A, B and C, as well as calcium, iron and copper, the vegetable not strong enough to treat strep throat like antibiotics.

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