STOP BLEACHING YOUR BANANAS!
When all this started, there was a lot of panic and uncertainty about how the SARS-Cov-2 virus spread. As it became clear that it transmitted much more easily than the flu, and through not just coughing or sneezing but even just talking, we became paranoid about every surface we came into contact with. Initial recommendations were to put all your mail, boxes and non-perishable groceries in your garage for a few days and/or swab them down with some kind of bleach or cleaning solution. Even Windex would work! We sanitized our hands whenever there was even a whiff of a possibility of contamination.
Although the virus can survive on solid surfaces for a period of time, we now know that the likelihood of getting infected through contacting these surfaces is exceptionally low. In fact, all the sanitization, especially when it comes to our hands, is causing more damage and may even increase the risk of other types of skin infections. When we remove all the protective oils and microbes from our skin we dry it out and make it more vulnerable.
I’m guilty of this as well. When you spend your day immersed in and having contact with people who potentially may have Covid, you get paranoid and it is hard to escape it. I’m working on it!
As I mentioned above, we now know that getting sick from shopping and picking up a can of beans is exceptionally slim. What is MUCH more likely is that you will contaminate yourself by continuously touching and adjusting the front of your mask, exactly where the virus is most likely to land. I see it all day long in the office. Patients, staff, people out in the world, constantly touching it. What makes even less sense is that they pull the mask off their face in order to talk. What the heck is the point of that? Not only are you contaminating your hands, but you are exhaling and inhaling more air and potentially getting infected or spreading infection.
STOP TOUCHING THE DARN MASK!!!!!
- It does NOT spread easily by fomites (surfaces).
- Soap and water are just as effective as sterilizing liquids and wipes. Simply put, the virus has a protective oily coating which is easily broken down by simple soap and water. And you don’t need hospital grade, sterilizing soaps either. All the chemicals in these soaps are not good for us. Remember that “If it’s ON you, it’s IN you”. Remember that this summer when you put on sunscreen. Some contain such portent carcinogens that you are more likely to get cancer from the sunscreen than from the sun.
- It spreads through the air when in relatively close contact with someone, with little or no ventilation and for longer periods of time. How close and how long? There is no exact number. Some studies show that the 6 foot distance may not be enough and that 10 minutes in a small space is all it takes.
If you are taking care of, or sharing space with someone who has Covid, or even a common cold for that matter, of course it makes sense to be extra careful and clean surfaces with something more potent, but otherwise, soap and water is fine. Keep the soap as chemical free as possible. It is mostly the mechanical rubbing that makes a difference anyway.
The number of people getting vaccinated is increasing but so is the number of cases of Covid, especially the variant types. Especially now in younger people, including kids. So PLEASE get vaccinated and continue to follow the basic protective practices.
MASK UP. Wear a good one and STOP TOUCHING IT!!!
DISTANCE. 3 feet is not enough.
VENTILATE.
VACCINATE.
GET HEALTHY! This is till a message that has been woefully missing in all of this.
Stay safe and be well.
AC 🌱 🏃♂️ ❤️ 🧘🏻♂️