RFK Jr. Claims Cod Liver Oil, Steroids, Antibiotics Can Treat Measles—Here’s What Doctors Say

While the measles outbreak in West Texas continues to grow, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has made headlines with some unconventional remedies for the virus.

On Tuesday, Texas Health and Human Services reported that the outbreak has reached 159 cases, including 22 hospitalizations and one death. Also on Tuesday, Kennedy discussed how the federal government is addressing the outbreak in an interview with Fox News.

Kennedy said doctors were seeing “very, very good results” from treating the illness with a steroid called budesonide, an antibiotic called clarithromycin, and cod liver oil, a supplement high in vitamins A and D.

But, infectious disease experts are skeptical of the remedies touted by Kennedy.

“None of those are treatments for measles,” Tina Tan, MD, a professor of pediatrics at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University and a Pediatric Infectious Diseases attending at the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, told Health. “Measles is a virus, and there are no antivirals that are licensed for treatment of measles.”

Here’s what experts had to say about these alternative remedies for measles—and how best to protect against the virus right now.

Of the three measles treatments Kennedy mentioned, cod liver oil has received the most media attention.

Cod liver oil is a supplement from cod fish that’s rich in vitamin A, vitamin D, and omega-3 fatty acids. The supplement is typically taken to help with health conditions like arthritis and depression, and studies suggest that cod liver oil can improve heart health and boost muscle recovery after a workout.

However, experts say the supplement itself is unlikely to help with measles.

“It’s a nutritional supplement that may have high levels of vitamins and other nutrients that we need, but it certainly has not been used for measles treatment,” Tuhina Joseph, DO, pediatric infectious disease physician at Tufts Medical Center, told Health.

There is evidence that vitamin A—which cod liver oil is high in—could improve measles patient outcomes, but only in specific situations.

Serious viral infections like measles can deplete your body of vitamin A, an essential nutrient for immune function. In low- and middle-income countries, where people are more likely to be vitamin A deficient, physicians may administer vitamin A to measles patients to prevent a severe infection, experts said.

In the U.S., where vitamin A deficiency is rare, the CDC only recommends vitamin A for young children with severe measles cases, administered under physician supervision.

“It basically helps your immune system fight measles if you’re vitamin A deficient,” Tan said. “If you’re not vitamin A deficient, then it’s not going to do anything.”

“The concern is there may be some misinformation out there that vitamin A can actually prevent measles infection, which it absolutely cannot do,” Joseph added. “Vaccination is really the only effective prevention.”

Taking too much vitamin A can actually be dangerous, experts said. Vitamin A is fat-soluble, which means it gets stored in the body instead of being flushed out through urine like water-soluble vitamins. If you take too much vitamin A, it can accumulate in the body and cause vitamin toxicity.

“For vitamin A, I very specifically would not encourage people to supplement just willy-nilly without checking with their healthcare provider first,” Amy Edwards, MD, associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, told Health.

Budesonide is a steroid that decreases inflammation in the body and is usually prescribed for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.

In the nasal spray form, budesonide is used to relieve sneezing and congestion caused by hay fever and allergies, but there is no research on the medication’s effectiveness in treating measles.

“I’m not really sure what role that would play in measles,” Edwards said. “I’m not aware of any papers that show that supportive therapy with inhaled steroids would be beneficial in somebody with measles.”

In fact, steroids may even do more harm than good for measles patients.

“If someone has a serious viral infection, and you just put them on a steroid, you’re going to make them worse,” said Tan.

Budesonide also has a host of potential side effects, such as vomiting, rash, joint and muscle pain, and more.

Clarithromycin is an antibiotic used to treat certain bacterial infections, such as pneumonia and bronchitis. Measles, however, is a viral infection.

“Antibiotics do not treat viruses. They’re only used for bacteria,” Tan explained. “Clarithromycin has zero effect and efficacy against measles because measles is a virus.”

The thought may be that clarithromycin could help fight secondary conditions that develop from measles like pneumonia—the most common cause of death from measles in young children—but experts agreed that clarithromycin is not the antibiotic they would prescribe.

“It’s an old one,” Edwards explained. “We don’t use that anymore.”

Also, experts said taking an antibiotic when it’s not necessary can be harmful.

“If people are just using the antibiotic just in case, you’re going to create more antibiotic resistance and antibiotic-resistant infections, which is going to place the person at a worse problem,” Tan added.

Clarithromycin also has many possible side effects, including diarrhea, vomiting, rash, flu-like symptoms, and more.

There is no specific treatment for measles, and experts agreed that the best protection against the virus is the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine.

“Vaccinate, vaccinate, vaccinate,” Tan said. “That’s the only way we’re going to control this outbreak.”

Experts recommended that everyone living in or near a measles outbreak make sure they’re vaccinated. If an unvaccinated person is exposed to the virus, Tan said they can still get a vaccine within three days of the exposure.

For individuals exposed to measles who cannot get a live MMR vaccine—young children, immunocompromised people, and pregnant people—Tan said an immune globulin may be recommended within six days of exposure.

Immune globulins are products made from human antibodies that can provide immediate, short-term protection against measles for these groups.

If someone does catch measles, experts recommended staying hydrated and isolated while the virus runs its course.

“Supportive care is the mainstay of treatment,” Joseph said. “Encouraging hydration, encouraging nutrition as they’re able.”