coronavirus

How to Protect Yourself Against the Coronavirus

Washing hands.

Wash your hands! Photograph: Moyo Studio/Getty Images

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Over the past few weeks, an increasing number of countries across the world accept struggled to contain the rapid spread of the novel coronavirus, also known equally COVID-nineteen. Since the outbreak began, there have been over 109,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus reported in at least 95 countries — and that number volition inevitably continue to ascension. In late February, the Centers for Illness Control and Prevention warned that the United States should brace for a domestic outbreak, with the director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases saying, "Information technology'southward non so much of a question of if this will happen in this country anymore merely a question of when this will happen." Equally of Monday, COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in 34 states, with Washington country, New York, and California suffering from the largest outbreaks.

And then now that the coronavirus is spreading across the U.Southward., how worried should you exist? And what precautions should you accept? We spoke to experts in epidemiology and immunology about what measures people can take to protect themselves.

According to the CDC, symptoms of the coronavirus include fever, coughing, and shortness of breath, which can announced anywhere between two days and two weeks after exposure. While health experts are nonetheless learning about how the coronavirus spreads, they believe it is largely spread through respiratory droplets that leave an infected person'south oral fissure or olfactory organ. Some experts believe that the virus is transmitted primarily through cough and sneezing, though it's likewise likely that information technology can spread through surface contact. In other words, if an infected person sneezes on a surface, a person who touches that surface could pick up the virus.

According to China's most comprehensive report about the outbreak, published in mid-Feb, 80 percent of novel coronavirus cases are mild, with symptoms similar to a common cold or seasonal influenza. Additionally, some people practice non show symptoms for upwardly to ii weeks after they've been infected, significant it'southward possible for people to transmit the virus without knowing they're infected — which has made the coronavirus a challenge to contain.

Washing your hands regularly is the best way to protect yourself from the coronavirus — assuming y'all're doing information technology correctly. The CDC recommends getting your hands wet with warm or common cold water; lathering your entire hands, including nether the nails, with soap; scrubbing your easily for 20 seconds; rinsing with clean water; and finally, either letting your easily air-dry or using a clean towel.

"Wash them specially well if y'all're about to eat," Aaron East. Carroll, a professor of pediatrics at Indiana Academy School of Medicine, wrote in the New York Times. "Wash them afterward you've blown your nose, coughed or sneezed. Go far routine that all members of the household launder their hands when they get home."

Information technology'due south also non a bad idea to bear effectually a manus sanitizer for times when you're not near a sink, though you should make sure it contains at least 60 percent alcohol. However, experts stress that washing your hands thoroughly — and frequently — is the best preventative mensurate.

For the majority of people, face masks will not prevent you from catching the coronavirus. Instead, the CDC recommends masks but for people who are already infected or who are in close contact with people who are infected, like infirmary and health-care workers.

"Widespread, unnecessary use of masks will lead to shortages, making information technology more difficult for people who demand them — health-care workers and people who have potentially been exposed — to be able to become them," Mark Lurie, an associate professor of epidemiology at Chocolate-brown University'southward School of Public Health, told the Cut.

In addition to washing your hands frequently, the CDC also recommends that you avert touching your face up — specifically, your eyes, nose, and oral cavity, which are entry portals for coronavirus and other germs. If an infected person coughs or sneezes on a surface, and you affect that contaminated surface and so touch your facial mucous membranes — the eyes, nose, and mouth — yous could become infected.

According to the New York Times, experts are recommending stocking up on at least a calendar month's worth of prescription or over-the-counter medicine, in the event that you have to self-quarantine. Experts are too advising buying extra shelf-stable food, cleaning supplies, and other necessary household items.

If there'due south an outbreak in your area, experts say it's wise to practice "social distancing" measures to mitigate the spread of viruses. These measures typically entail keeping your altitude from other people — the CDC recommends standing at least half dozen anxiety away, if possible — and avoiding crowded spaces. (Some countries similar France have already implemented such measures, similar banning gatherings of more than 1,000 people.)

Be cautious: If you experience any cold or flulike symptoms, you should stay home (if you can afford to.) And even if yous aren't sick, information technology's a good idea to piece of work from dwelling if you can. Equally Katie Heaney noted on the Cut, every time we exit our home, we increment our risk of exposure and transmission, potentially unknowingly.

According to the Times, if you recall yous have the coronavirus, yous should reach out to your doctor or local health department, or follow the instructions on the CDC'south website.

As of now, the CDC does not recommend specific precautions for pregnant women, as in that location'south a lack of "data from published scientific reports about susceptibility of meaning women to COVID-19." However, the CDC notes that because pregnant women'southward immune systems are in flux, it's possible they could exist more susceptible. "It makes sense that a pregnant woman would exist at higher take chances of complications from this virus than a nonpregnant one," Dr. Steven Gordon, M.D., an infectious-affliction specialist at the Cleveland Clinic, told the New York Times last week.

While COVID-19 will cause mild symptoms in the majority of infected people, Jan Carette, an associate professor at the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Stanford University's School of Medicine, says that the elderly — especially those with chronic conditions, like hypertension or diabetes — are at greater risk for more severe illness. In this instance, he recommends that those who are peculiarly susceptible practice the above precautions equally well as avoid people who display flulike symptoms.

If you have upcoming travel plans, it's a good thought to stay up-to-date on the CDC's travel warnings for specific countries. In general, information technology's safest to avoid nonessential travel to countries with a sustained COVID-nineteen presence; right at present, this includes Iran, People's republic of china, Southward Korea, and Italia. For individuals who are particularly susceptible to viral infections, including the elderly and those with existing medical weather condition, the CDC advises avoiding travel to Japan besides.

Currently, the CDC doesn't take whatsoever additional recommendations for domestic travel, though this could change equally the virus spreads further in the Us. But according to the CDC's website, the risk of infection on an airplane is low. "Because of how air circulates and is filtered on airplanes, nigh viruses and other germs do not spread easily," they write. Yet, they recommend that travelers wash their hands frequently and avoid contact with ill passengers.

This post has been updated.

How to Protect Yourself Against the Coronavirus