Why does the pandemic fade away during the summer? This study may explain it

Last year, after the first lockdown and the tragic balance of the pandemic, the time has come when the situation has changed dramatically. During the holidays, there were definitely fewer COVID-19 infections, and the Polish prime minister announced that the virus is in retreat and that there is no need to be afraid of it. Why did this happen? Italian scientists found the answer.

1. Summer 2020 saw a marked decrease in the number of infections, and the situation in Poland and Europe seemed to be returning to normal
2. After the holidays, however, the number of infections began to rise again, which resulted in a second wave of the pandemic
3. Research by Italian scientists sheds new light on this phenomenon. This year the situation may repeat itself
4. More information can be found on the Onet homepage.

Coronavirus: the virus was “in retreat” during the summer holidays?

The first wave of the coronavirus pandemic in Poland began to fade away as we neared summer. Then the government loosened further restrictions and the citizens of our country returned to normalcy. They were also directly encouraged by the government – Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said in July that the virus was in retreat.

– I am glad that we are less and less afraid of this virus, this epidemic. This is a good approach because he’s on the retreat. You don’t need to be afraid of him now. You have to go to the elections on July 12. Everyone, especially seniors, let’s not be afraid, let’s go to the elections – added Morawiecki.

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It quickly turned out that the situation was not under control yet. The increase in the number of infections began at the end of September, and the peak of the second wave in Poland was in November.

Italian scientists: sunlight kills coronavirus in minutes

Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said something last year, which is confirmed by scientists today.

– In summer, flu viruses and this coronavirus are weaker, much weaker – said Morawiecki.

Recent studies by scientists from the University of Milan and the Italian Institute of Astrophysics indicate that, in fact, SARS-CoV-2 may pose a lower epidemic threat in the warm months. It has to do with the sun’s rays, especially UVA and UVB rays.

‘Our findings indicate that solar radiation reaching the Earth’s surface could completely deactivate SARS-Cov-2 in minutes at a concentration similar to that found in saliva, the researchers wrote.

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This discovery may explain the seasonality of the coronavirus. When it gets warm, the sun destroys the virus, preventing it from spreading. The scientists’ conclusions also confirm the role of sunlight in disinfecting external surfaces.

The research results have been published on the MedRxiv portal, where preliminary reports can be found. This means that the conclusions of Italian scientists are not scientifically confirmed so far. However, taking into account the dynamics of the increase in infections throughout the pandemic period, there is a high probability that they are right.

In Poland, the pandemic situation after the third wave seems to be calming down. On June 1, 588 new infections and 111 deaths were recorded in our country. At the peak of the third wave, the daily number of infections exceeded 30. So far, the highest number of deaths has been recorded in Poland on April 8. Then 19 people died from COVID-954.

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3. Dr. Szułdrzyński: vaccination against COVID-19 should be mandatory
4. Prof. Banach: there is a chance that we will achieve population immunity to the coronavirus in September
5. Sweden relaxes the restrictions. The number of infections is record high

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