Over the past, two records were revealed at once – for the hottest air temperature and the high incidence of coronavirus. The experts found out if there is a direct correlation between them.
In recent days, an absolute record for abnormally high temperatures has been broken in several Russian regions. At the same time, the Ministry of Health announced a record number of cases of coronavirus over the past weekend. Citizens sound the alarm: could extreme heat affect the health of residents?
So, the professor of the Faculty of Biology of Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov Nikolay Nikitin. According to him, at the moment, biologists have not found any confirmation of this hypothesis. The specialist reassured the Russians, explaining the impossibility of the weather affecting the virus. For the most part, the point is precisely in non-compliance with the prescriptions of epidemiologists. Residents flooded city parks and streets, and many forget about masks and gloves in the 19-degree heat.
“During the COVID-19 pandemic, it turned out that high summer temperatures and solar radiation have no effect on the coronavirus, its mutations and spread. Communication can only be mediated: in the heat, people leave the cities, many live in dachas and are less in contact and infect each other than in the cold season. Social factors are more at work here. Heat, bright sun and ultraviolet light have no effect on coronavirus infection and have no effect on the virus itself. As for the strains, here, too, one cannot say that the heat affected the emergence and spread of new mutations, ”the scientist said.
The biologist advised not to ignore the rules of social distance that are already familiar to us, wearing personal protective equipment, and also advised to get vaccinated soon. Currently, it is the vaccine that contributes to the appearance of antibodies in the human body.
However, the specialist also noted that severe stuffiness can negatively affect the condition of people who are already infected with COVID-19.
“Most likely, people who already have chronic diseases will carry the coronavirus infection in the heat worst of all. This primarily applies to people with circulatory system problems or heart disease. For them, such a heat is an additional load on the heart, so the course of the disease may become complicated, ”Nikolai Nikitin explained.
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