With Covid-19 hovering over us, a lot of false information is floating too. We would like to present a few coronavirus myths for consideration.
Ofcourse, if a lockdown would have been powerful enough, all our health problems would have been sorted till now. The virus is so damaging that even locked up inside your homes will only reduce the infection, not eradicate it.
What is true to say is every little social distancing can help break the chain of infected people, who eventually spread the disease further. This is the key intention behind the lockdown & curfew. It will help to identify and quarantine the carriers well in time and provide appropriate treatment.
People of all age groups can be infected by the Covid-19.
Infants, youngsters, aged and people with pre-existing medical conditions (bone infection, asthma, diabetes, heart disease) are considerably vulnerable to be down with the virus.
Let’s look at a few valuable Coronavirus Myth-Busters – THESE ARE THE FACTS.
- Cold weather and snow cannot kill Coronavirus.
- Hand dryers are not effective in killing the virus.
- There is no proof that regularly cleaning your nose with saline can protect people from coronavirus infection.
- The coronavirus can be transmitted in areas with hot and humid climates also.
- Ultraviolet light should not be used for sterilization and can lead to skin irritation.
- Garlic is healthy but there is no proof from the current outbreak that eating garlic can protect people against coronavirus.
- The coronavirus cannot be transmitted through flies or mosquitoes.
- Thermal scanners can detect only fever but cannot detect whether you or someone has coronavirus.
- Antibiotics do not work against viruses, antibiotics only work against bacteria.
- There is no proof that pets/ companion animals such as dogs/cats/cubs can transmit the virus.
- Spraying alcohol or chlorine on your body will not kill viruses that have already entered your body.
- Till date, there is no medicine/cure recommended to prevent or treat the coronavirus.
- Taking a hot bath does not prevent the coronavirus.
- Vaccines against pneumonia, such as pneumococcal vaccine and Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) vaccine, do not protect against coronavirus.
Novel coronavirus which is also known as COVID-19 multiplies in infected people and is essentially transmitted between people who are physically present in proximity. It is mainly transferred through droplets which come out when an infected person coughs or sneezes. Also, these droplets meet healthy people, i.e. you may touch your eyes, mouth or nose after shaking hands with an infected person. This is exactly how the virus spreads from one person to another. Also, the virus can be picked up from infected surfaces where droplets containing coronavirus had lodged.
The coronavirus can survive on different surfaces for varying time frames starting with a few hours to a few days. So, an extended 2 weeks curfew will hardly be effective to kill those infections in a go or clean the public surfaces. It has been suggested to increase the lockdown period for a while at least.
We all are united against the battle of Covid-19!