What is the coronavirus afraid of?

Contents

Heat
Ultraviolet
Cold
Alcohol
Garlic
Ginger, lemon
Should we be afraid of the coronavirus?
susceptibility and immunity
Types of COVID-19
Popular questions and answers
- Sources of

COVID-19 has literally plunged the entire planet into a state of panic and constant fear. What is the virus itself afraid of and how can it be influenced? Let’s look for answers together with scientists from all over the world

We have been living in a pandemic for the second year and during this time we have managed to accumulate knowledge about how external factors affect the virus, such as hot sunny weather, severe frost or disinfection. This made it possible to draw certain conclusions about the spread of infection and methods of dealing with it. The knowledge gained helps to develop preventive measures in the home, public places and medical institutions¹.

Heat

Even at the beginning of the pandemic, rumors spread that the coronavirus was destroyed by high temperature – just take a hot bath or go to the bathhouse. However, quite quickly, scientists came to the conclusion that this was not the case. Because regardless of the temperature of water or air, body temperature is kept within 36,5 – 37 ° C²absolutely not harmful to the virus. And even more – if during a viral infection there is an increase in body temperature, then the steam room and saunas are contraindicated, visiting them can aggravate the course of the disease and lead to complications.

Even during the recovery period after a coronavirus infection, extreme temperature changes should not be practiced. The body is weakened after an illness, and high temperatures are an additional, rather intense load.

Cool humidified air is useful for recovery, not sizzling heat³.

Ultraviolet

Like most other pathogens, the coronavirus is afraid of ultraviolet rays. Therefore, the sun reduces the risk of transmission of infection through objects that are under its direct influence.

However, it is not worth hoping that UV rays can reduce the intensity of the epidemic, since the virus is transmitted from person to person through close contact, with droplets of mucus or saliva⁴.

Cold

The cold will not help to destroy the coronavirus, so there is no point in freezing yourself on the street. On the contrary, hypothermia can weaken the immune system and increase the chances of infection.

Remember, COVID-19 is transmitted and affects the body in the same way as seasonal flu. When do people get sick the most? That’s right, in winter and in the off-season, when it’s cold outside⁵.

Alcohol

Alcohol helps to destroy the coronavirus if used as an antiseptic for hands and various surfaces.

Wiping the whole body with alcohol, as advised in folk recipes, makes no sense – the coronavirus is transmitted through the mucous membranes when you rub your nose, eyes or mouth with dirty hands. It is also not recommended to spray alcohol-containing liquids near you! The virus will not destroy this, but it will easily cause irritation of the cornea of uXNUMXbuXNUMXbthe eyes or the nasal mucosa!

And, of course, do not take alcohol inside! This will not stop the infection, but it will weaken the immune system.

Garlic

The WHO recognizes that garlic is a “health food with certain antimicrobial properties.” But he clarifies: “During the current outbreak, there has been no evidence of the effectiveness of the use of garlic as a means of preventing infection with the new coronavirus.” As they say, it won’t get better, but it won’t get worse either.

Specialist comment:

“With the good antimicrobial properties of garlic during the COVID-19 outbreak, neither garlic nor onion have been studied for the effectiveness of preventing and treating coronavirus infection,” recalls PhD, virologist Anna Demina. – No studies have been conducted on this topic, so these products cannot be considered effective measures to prevent coronavirus infection.

Ginger, lemon

Ginger and lemon are known for their positive effect on the protective status of the body. However, we do not have any information regarding their properties in relation to the coronavirus. Therefore, eating lemons and ginger in kilograms, hoping to protect yourself from infection, is useless. They will help increase the level of vitamin C and antioxidants in the body, but they will not be able to overcome the virus when infected, as well as protect the body from infection.

Should we be afraid of the coronavirus?

The COVID-19 epidemic (“coronavirus disease 2019”) has already gone down in history as an international emergency. We have yet to study the features of this epidemic, learn lessons, and analyze the shortcomings in ensuring the biological safety of the population. One thing is clear: new viruses will appear, this is an integral part of our world. Humanity must learn to counter these threats.

susceptibility and immunity

Susceptibility to the pathogen COVID-19 is high in all population groups. The risk groups for a severe course of the disease and death include people over 60 years of age, patients with chronic pathologies (diseases of the respiratory system, cardiovascular system, oncological diseases).

The lethality of the infection varies from 2 to 4%.

Types of COVID-19

Clinical variants and manifestations of COVID-19:

Acute respiratory viral infection of a mild course;
Pneumonia without respiratory failure;
Pneumonia with acute respiratory failure (ARF);
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS);
Sepsis;
Septic (infectious-toxic) shock.

Hypoxemia (a decrease in blood oxygen saturation of less than 88%) develops in more than 30% of patients.

There are mild, moderate and severe forms of COVID-19. Most patients with severe COVID-19 develop pneumonia in the first week of illness. With the progression of the process, infiltration increases, the affected areas increase, ARDS joins. Sepsis and infectious-toxic shock are observed in a severe variant of the disease.⁶.