How To Protect Yourself From The Coronavirus? Info From A To Z

What is COVID-19? What are his symptoms? How to protect yourself from the coronavirus and how to reduce the risk of being infected or infecting others around you? Should you wear a mask? What are the hygienic gestures to practice on a daily basis? How to naturally strengthen your immunity? Who are the "fragile" people? What to do when returning from a risky area? Focus on the answers to the most asked questions today!

What is the coronavirus and how can you protect yourself from it?

First, what is Covid-19? Part of the respiratory virus family, causing illnesses ranging from a simple cold to more severe pathologies, the coronavirus is the latest infectious disease to be discovered. Although it was unknown before its appearance in Wuhan (China), in December 2019, this virus is already responsible for an epidemic, reclassified this Friday by the WHO as a pandemic. Calling the coronavirus epidemic a pandemic simply means that the disease has officially spread around the world.

How is it spread?

The coronavirus is transmitted by people who carry the disease. It can be passed from person to person when they sneeze or cough in a closed space. Respiratory droplets, expelled from the nose or mouth, can thus stick to objects or surfaces around the infected person. You can therefore very easily infect the virus, just by touching one of these objects or surfaces. This is why washing your hands regularly is of the utmost importance. You can also get the virus by inhaling droplets from a person with covid-19 who has just coughed. According to the latest studies, the virus responsible for Covid-19 is more transmissible by contact with respiratory droplets than by air.

When it comes to the lifespan of the virus, it is not known for sure how long it can survive on your personal items. However, it seems that the virus responsible for Covid-19 behaves like other coronaviruses. Studies and research show that coronaviruses can survive on surfaces from hours to days. If you therefore suspect that a surface may be infected, clean it quickly with a suitable disinfectant. Also avoid touching your eyes and mouth.

What are the symptoms of the coronavirus?

The most common symptoms of coronavirus include fever, fatigue and a dry cough. Some patients may experience pain, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat, and diarrhea. Being generally mild, symptoms of Covid-19 appear gradually. Although infected, some patients feel well and have no symptoms. About 80% of infected people recover without needing any special treatment. Only one in six people infected with the disease have more severe symptoms. This is the case with the elderly and those with other health problems, such as high blood pressure, heart problems or diabetes, where the disease can lead to death.

What is the most threatened age group?

Although the mortality caused by the coronavirus concerns, in most cases, the elderly, health authorities now realize, after several weeks of the epidemic, that the acute symptoms of the virus can indeed affect all age groups., including the youngest suffering from chronic diseases (heart disease, cancer, asthma) or immunosuppression (HIV infection). In the field, we already have young people in intensive care, with respiratory complications requiring one day of artificial ventilation. However, the majority of the dead are over 70 years old.

Daily actions to protect yourself from the coronavirus

How to protect yourself from the coronavirus on a daily basis? In the absence of a vaccine and faced with a very contagious virus, public health experts call for vigilance and insist on preventive measures to try to stop the spread of the virus. The rules that must absolutely be emphasized are:

• wash your hands thoroughly for at least 20 seconds with soap and warm water or use a hand sanitizer
• using a tissue to cough or sneeze
• avoiding touching your nose, eyes, or mouth with dirty hands
• do not contact with sick people
• in case of symptoms, one should contact a doctor and stay at home

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As for the other actions you can take to protect yourself from the coronavirus, maintaining a “social” distance is essential. In other words, you must keep a safe distance of one meter between yourself and a person who is likely to have the coronavirus. This is the distance that allows you not to be touched by respiratory droplets, which we told you about above. However, when it comes to a closed place where keeping this distance is impossible, specialists advise turning your back on the sick person, so that the secretions have less risk of touching your hands or your face.

Another precautionary measure is to avoid shaking hands or kissing your loved ones. Likewise, you should limit your trips and visits to accommodation establishments for the elderly. The latter must, for their part, reduce their outings and rather stay at home. Ditto for people with chronic or respiratory illnesses. Also avoid places that have large gatherings of people during rush hour. People who can work from their homes are encouraged to do so.

Are there natural remedies for the coronavirus?

Faced with the lack of treatment for the coronavirus and the speed of its progression, it is psychosis that sets in, while giving way to many rumors about so-called miracle home remedies that would fight the disease. infection. And while some of them can possibly relieve certain symptoms like coughing, others are absolutely ineffective. However, boosting the immune system during an influenza pandemic is always a good idea! The first way to help your defenses and stress less. After stress, you have to take care of your belly and your microbiota, by eating a healthy and varied diet (fruits, vegetables, rice, cereals, fermented foods). A cure of vitamins C and D is also welcome.

Note: above all, do not take anti-inflammatory drugs!

Wearing a mask: effective or not?

If you have symptoms of coronavirus or are caring for someone who may be infected, wearing a mask is essential. Note: these masks are for single use and must be well adapted to the size of the face. They are not washable or reusable in any way. If you wear one, but you are not sick, this can be considered a waste. Given the current shortage of masks, the World Health Organization (WHO) strongly advises people to use them sparingly!

According to some doctors, the mask tends to lower alertness and provide a sort of false sense of security to the wearer. It must be adapted to the size and shape of the face and must be well positioned: the padded side of the nose bar must be placed on the hump of the nose to protect it well. Otherwise, it becomes completely useless.

Where can I get tested?

How to protect yourself from the coronavirus? To promote screening for Covid-19 and limit its spread, the government has decided to involve competent actors at the local level. Now, city laboratories can perform diagnostic tests for coronavirus infection. Previously, this manipulation was only authorized in the laboratories of hospitals, with a level of containment and protection level 3.

What to do when returning from a risky area?

If you are returning from a risk area (mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao, Singapore, South Korea, Iran or Italy), therefore apply the main precautionary measures. Also watch for symptoms for two weeks after your return by taking your temperature twice a day. Remember to respect social restriction measures. Limit or even cancel your trips and meetings with vulnerable people. Opt for telecommuting! As for wearing a protective face mask made of paper or fabric, it is not necessary, if you do not experience symptoms.

Should we panic about Covid-19?

Re-qualifying the Covid-19 epidemic as a pandemic does not mean that the threat posed by the virus is greater. It is simply a recognition of its spread globally. This does not change the precautionary measures that countries must take, underlines the WHO. The world should not put the focus on the “pandemic” mountain, but rather on prevention and public health. Although the virus has spread rapidly around the globe, experts point out that countries can change the course of the pandemic, and that it is the first that can be truly controlled.

* Information source vitarama.bg