Mike Lindell, the MyPillow founder, was Anderson Cooper’s guest on CNN on Tuesday night, where he touted his new “miracle cure” for Covid-19.
The Minnesota businessman promoted a herbal supplement, oleandrin, that he claims is a cure for the coronavirus. “This thing works, and it is the miracle of all time,” said the born-again Christian.
But Cooper challenged Lindell’s miracle cure, saying he was putting lives in danger.
Lindell said he received a call that led him to the miracle cure.
“This guy called me on Easter Sunday and said he has an answer to the virus, so I reached out to my friend Secretary Ben Carson, who is on the taskforce.”
Lindell said his friend, Trump, was “enthusiastic” about the cure and he wanted the FDA to approve it.
Cooper argued that (like Bill Gates) Lindell had no medical background.
“You have no medical background,” Cooper said. “You are not a scientist. A guy called in April saying he had this product. You are now on the board and going to make money from the sale of this product.”
Cooper noted that Dr. William Schaffner, professor of infectious diseases at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee, called oleandrin “quackery” and advised people not to take it.
Oleandrin is a toxic glycoside found in the poisonous plant, oleander. Oleander has been traditionally used in the medical treatment of cardiac insufficiency, asthma, diabetes, cancer, epilepsy, and more.
In large doses, oleander is deadly and toxic to the heart, kidneys and liver. Deaths have been accidental, but some people use it to commit suicide.
Lindell, a 59-year-old former crack addict, began selling foam-filled pillows at 2004 trade shows. His company, MyPillow, has sold more tan 40 million pillows, according to his website.
