COVID-19: How You Can Protect Yourself

2020 rang in more than just a new decade. Unfortunately, it rang in a new pandemic as well. There seems to be a mixed response from Americans—some are rushing to empty store shelves of hand sanitizer and toilet paper, some are living their daily lives without giving the outbreak a second thought, and others exhibit a mixture of the two extremes. Just how dangerous is COVID-19? What should you be doing to keep you and your family safe? This is the first of a series of blog posts that will keep you updated on information you need to know about the virus.

What is it?

COVID-19 is a strain from a group of viruses called coronaviruses. Coronaviruses are named after the Latin corona which means “crown” or “wreath.” This name comes from their crown-like shape. They can cause illnesses in both animals and people. The most common examples of coronaviruses include the common cold, and the SARS and MERS epidemics that have occurred in recent years. 

COVID-19 is a new, mutated strain of coronavirus. The virus was discovered in Hubei province, China in late December 2019, and has since spread to a majority of countries across the globe. Some experts pinpoint the exact location to the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan, China.[1] Through studying the virus, they have found that there was a coronavirus found in bats with a genetic similarity of 96% to COVID-19, that is not able to infect humans.[2] This means that there was most likely an animal that transferred the virus from bats to humans. There are speculations of what this animal might be, but there is no certainty as of right now.

What are the statistics?

As of March 16th, 2020, there have been 3,487 reported cases of COVID-19 in the United States according to the CDC. Of these, 68 people have died from contracting the virus.

According to the World Health Organization, there have been 167,511 reported cases of COVID-19, resulting in 6,606 deaths. 

What are the symptoms?

Being a respiratory infection, some of the symptoms people have experienced are[3]:

• Fever
• Shortness of breath
• Coughing

Emergency symptoms include:

• Difficulty breathing
• Bluish lips/face
• Ongoing pain/pressure in chest

In some cases, COVID-19 can progress into more serious respiratory illnesses, such as pneumonia. However, most COVID-19 cases are nothing to worry about. Of those who experience symptoms, the majority will be very mild and not cause any sort of long-term health consequences. The fear in containing and controlling the virus stems from protecting the nation’s most vulnerable populations. Those with the highest risk of experiencing long-term complications or death from the virus are:

• Older adults (60+)
• Individuals with serious chronic medical conditions, such as diabetes, lung diseases, and heart diseases.

How can I protect myself and others?

The very first thing you can do to protect yourself is to distance yourself from social situations. Other than where you are required to go (work, the grocery store, the doctor when needed) the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and World Health Organization are both recommending that everyone stay home as much as possible to limit unnecessary exposure to others.

If you do have to go out in order to work or take care of basic necessities, make sure you wash your hands well, avoid close contact with others, and make a conscious effort to not touch your face. If COVID-19 is present in your city, these preventative measures will lessen the likelihood of the virus transmitting to you if you come in direct or indirect contact with an infected person.

COVID-19 is spread through close contact and air droplets. That’s why it’s so important to keep your space away from people—if someone sneezes or coughs without covering their mouth, the virus can be immediately transferred to you. The virus can also live on surfaces for hours. If an infected person coughs or sneezes on their hands and then touch you or another object, it’s safe to assume that whatever they touch is now infected with the virus. It’s important to wash your hands well after touching anything that has been in contact with another person. Sing the “Happy Birthday” song to yourself while scrubbing, and you should be good to go.

The viruses incubation period is around five days. However, a study done in China this month found that 97% of patients began showing symptoms around 11 days after exposure to the virus.[4] It is believed that people can transmit the virus even when they show no symptoms, so precautionary measures continue to be the preferred method of preventing viral spread. In addition, if you’re unable to socially distance yourself, take care to not come in close contact with people who could be most vulnerable to the virus. 

Last but not least, the best thing you can do for yourself is to continue to take charge of your health. Doing this will both help your mental and physical health, and will keep your immune system in pristine condition. 

We are here for you.

At West Coast Wellness, we take great strides in protecting the health of our clients and our employees. Whether you are quarantining yourself or not, we recommend continue to work on your physical and mental health. Now more than ever, it’s important to keep your immune system strong by doing home workouts while practicing social distancing, eating the right foods, and practicing coping skills such as meditation to reduce any anxiety or worries in this uncertain time.

We are also here to remind you that West Coast Wellness will still be delivering and installing equipment. If you are in need of items to workout at home, please look through our selection of discount new and refurbished equipment. We would like to continue to be a part of your wellness journey, and are always taking every necessary precaution to ensure the wellbeing of our clients and employees. 

Stay tuned for more articles to help you through this difficult time. We send our best wishes to you all.

Sources:

[1] Brown, Matthew. USA Today. “Fact check: Coronavirus originated in China, not elsewhere, researchers and studies say.” USAToday.com. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/03/16/coronavirus-fact-check-where-did-covid-19-start-experts-say-china/5053783002/

[2]Chow, Denise. NBC News. “Where did the new coronavirus come from? Past outbreaks provide hints.” NBCNews.com. https://www.nbcnews.com/science/science-news/where-did-new-coronavirus-come-past-outbreaks-provide-hints-n1144521

[3]Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/symptoms.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fcoronavirus%2F2019-ncov%2Fabout%2Fsymptoms.html

[4] Lauer SA, Grantz KH, Bi Q, et al. The Incubation Period of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) From Publicly Reported Confirmed Cases: Estimation and Application. Ann Intern Med. 2020; [Epub ahead of print 10 March 2020]. doi: https://doi.org/10.7326/M20-0504