General Wellness

At this point, you have to assume that new Covid infections are from the Delta variant.

It is 5x as infectious as the original form, twice as likely as the British Alpha variant.

It replicates at a much more rapid rate and infected people generate, and expel 1000x more viral load.

Delta also attaches to the ACE-2 receptor to a much greater degree.

It impacts children and young people to a much greater degree.

It also appears to cause more serious illness, but only in those NOT vaccinated or those who have not had Covid before.

As far as testing goes, because of the above mentioned characteristics, you can become positive after exposure within as little as 18 hours, and be infectious at that time without symptoms. If you are concerned of an exposure, you can test as early as 2 days. You should repeat at 5-7 days.

As far as isolating goes, the duration of illness appears to be the same so the same timelines apply. Isolate for 10 days after onset of symptoms or from the date of a positive test. If you continue to have a fever, you should isolate yourself until 2 days after the fever ends. “Long-haul” symptoms such as loss of hair, smell and taste, headaches… can persist for weeks or months and do not apply when considering duration of isolation, just the onset of symptoms.

Some people argue that vaccinated people can still get sick. Although that is certainly true, there is still quite a bit of protection. In addition, the duration and degree of illness is significantly reduced after vaccination. 98-99% of ICU admissions and deaths are in non vaccinated people.

Vaccination is not a shield. It is a tool. You MUST continue to wear a mask when in situations where there are a lot of unmasked people, or are indoors with a lot of people, especially if poorly ventilated.

Stay Safe and Be Well.

AC

There is an internet-fueled theory, unfortunately adamantly believed by many people, floating around that the Covid 19 vaccines cause infertility, thin the uterus and can impact on pregnancy.

All this stems from a uterine and placental protein called syncytin-1. It shares a few similar amino acid sequences with the coronavirus spike protein, against which vaccines create an immune response. In theory, the spike protein antibodies generated by the vaccine could mis-recognize the syncytin-1 protein leading to fertility and pregnancy issues. This mis-recognition is basically how all autoimmune diseases occur. Autoimmune hepatitis after having the flu is a classic example. There are studies linking antibodies formed against cow’s milk proteins to juvenile diabetes because of amino acid similarities between proteins in the human beta cells, which make insulin, and cow’s milk proteins. 

Although it is true that a few amino acid sequences are shared by these two proteins, there is absolutely no evidence of vaccination causing any such problems. If this were the case, you would also expect to see an increase in miscarriages in pregnant women who contract Covid itself. Although getting a significant case of Covid while pregnant can endanger the mothers health and potentially the baby, since pregnancy is in and of itself an immunocompromised and stressed state, there is no proof that it impacts the pregnancy or the baby as it pertains to this synectin-1 protein. 

The same goes for vaccination. There is no evidence of any effects at all on pregnancy or fertility. 

In fact, the opposite is the case. It protects mom, who then passes along passive immunity to the baby for protection after birth. Not only does vaccination of pregnant women protect the mother, it also protects the baby and gives it a head start after birth! The CDC just came out once again, reinforcing the recommendations for all pregnant women to get vaccinated, at any stage of pregnancy.

STOP THE INSANITY ALREADY!

Stop committing child endangerment and get vaccinated! I know that sounds a bit extreme, but that is essentially what unvaccinated parents are doing. They are NOT protecting their kids by not getting vaccinated. That is the same as endangering them. 

Get vaccinated and protect your kids as well as all the other kids in your community who can’t get a vaccine yet. The pediatric case rate is skyrocketing. More kids are really getting sick and some are dying.

In a detailed review of people who have had Covid, including those with none to minimal symptoms while ill, 70% are identified as having some kind of “long-haul” symptom. Some are bothersome but not so severe, like loss of smell or hair loss, but some are very serious like brain fog, heart failure, lung disease and diabetes. 

In Philadelphia, there is a chronic Covid symptom clinic. One of the practitioners there has expressed concern that the SARS-Cov-2 virus could impair pediatric brain development and way down the line, result in premature dementia in adulthood. The brain continues to develop into our 20s, especially the frontal lobe where, amongst other things, behavior and executive function are processed. Do you want to risk your child struggling through life only to develop dementia prematurely as an adult? We already poison their brains with all the screentime, sports-related head injuries, processed foods and artificial colorings.

Please get vaccinated and continue to do all those things we know help to slow down the spread of this disease.

MASK UP, vaccinated or not. You can still catch it and/or pass it along to someone else.

DISTANCE. Don’t go to that crazy “Homecoming Concert” in NYC. Too many people, too close together.

VENTILATE. Stay outdoors and use fans and filters indoors.

WASH YOUR HANDS. Although this was less of a concern with the original virus, Delta is much more transmissible. You don’t have to sanitize your bananas, but just keep your hands clean.

GET HEALTHY! Only you can help yourself.

I’m taking a break for a bit. Burning out.

Stay safe and be well.

AC