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The World Health Organization recommends keeping at least 1 meter distance between people to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Professor Lydia Bourouiba from MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) argues that this distance should be much greater.
The main route of transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus is through the droplet route. This means that we can become infected through contact with a sick person and coughs and sneezes in our company. To protect yourself from infection, WHO recommends washing your hands frequently in warm soapy water, avoiding touching your face and maintaining a social distance from the other person – a minimum of 1 meter.
It turns out, however, that the last recommendation may not be sufficient. MIT researcher Professor Lydia Bourouiba, who studies the dynamics of coughing and sneezing, argues in the Journal of the American Medical Association that the appropriate distance should be even 7-8 meters.
Professor Bourouiba conducts research into the dynamics of coughing and sneezing. According to her observations, the particles of saliva thrown out during these activities, which may contain coronavirus, can travel up to 7-8 meters. They can also stay in the air for several hours. Sneezing or coughing the elbow bend does not help much either, because some of the saliva droplets will end up in the air anyway.
The professor’s research shows that the particles of mucus and saliva that we excrete when sneezing, coughing, breathing or talking do not fall to the floor, but can persist for a long time and travel much greater distances than we thought.
Dr. Paul Pottinger, professor of infectious diseases at the University of Washington School of Medicine, points to one important fact – whether salivary viruses are still virulent after being thrown such a great distance? “The smaller the saliva particles, the lower the risk of having virulent virus particles in it,” he told USA Today.
According to Pottinger, the biggest risk is still large drops of secretions from the nose or mouth, which can carry infectious particles. The largest droplets usually fall within a distance of up to two meters. Hence the principle of keeping such a distance from the other person in order to avoid contamination.
USA Today asked WHO what it thought of Professor Bourouiby’s findings. In response, the organization admitted that it would look at the results of the research and said that it “monitors reports on this critically important case and will modify the indications if new information becomes available”.
At the moment, keeping a distance of 1-2 meters from each other seems to be sufficient. Scientists are still researching how long the coronavirus is virulent after it leaves its host – how long it remains on surfaces and in the air.
Have a question about the coronavirus? Send them to the following address: [email protected]. You will find a daily updated list of answers HERE: Coronavirus – frequently asked questions and answers
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