Why is the world silent on SARS-CoV2-19?
It isn’t really, but the media and health agencies are. What do we know?
1. This is an airborne virus that lingers for hours in the air. Improving air circulation with proper filtering can help this.
2. This is a vascular virus, meaning the cardio-vascular system of your body. Because the cardio-vascular system touches every part of your body, and this virus can infect ANY part of your body, it means it can infect everything. It can infect your blood, your skin, your brain, your lungs, your liver, your kidneys.
3. Damage caused by this virus is cumulative, and the cumulative damage it causes can lead to long term health issues, varying depending on what was infected, referred to as Long Covid.
4. Covid has been shown to impact and damage your immune system, making people infected more vulnerable to not just Covid reinfections, but any other virus that your immune system normally protects you from. A cold or flu after Covid infections will be worse than prior to the infection, as your body loses capacity to fight those infections.
5. Because of all this, the more infections you fight off, the more likely you end up being immunocompromised, and potentially disabled to some degree. Covid is a virus that can kill you but is much more likely to give you a lifelong disability. Instances of other diseases also rise with Covid infections – people who’ve had Covid are more likely to be diagnosed with heart conditions, brain conditions, diabetes, and high levels of blood clots in your system that can hamper organ function, even cause heart attacks and strokes.
6. The risk of long-term symptoms and disability is high and increases with each infection. Suggestions from doctors and scientists who’ve been studying this suggest as high as 10% (1 in 10) on a first infection, with that rising with each subsequent infection. (depending on where you look, the first infection number will vary, but regardless appears to be significant enough to warrant concern, especially with subsequent infections.)
Note that while guidance on these things may change over time, and as more and more people are infected, we’ll have a much better understanding of percentages and odds, this is all well known and clear. We know that mask wearing (Quality N95 or better respirators), proper air circulation and filtration reduce the chances of transmission, and vaccination reduces the chances of death or disability. Also note that reduces does not mean eliminates. The smart way to deal with Covid-19 is to avoid infection, as even a single infection is likely to be life altering, More so than a previous infection, with each infection increasing the likelihood more than the last.
Another worthwhile consideration is the rate of mutation. Coronaviruses are well known for rapid, massive mutation – there are thousands of variants running around that we know about. Some are less deadly/disabling, some are more so, some are less transmissible, and some much more than others, and some are less affected by vaccine protections. We’re currently in a situation where without proper precautions and mitigation, we’re going to see a gradual economic downward trend, since the number of people who can’t contribute to the workforce is growing, and with them, the number of people who participate in the economy shrinking. This is a trend that will continue for as long as we continue to ignore the dangers.
At some point we may find a sterilizing vaccine, proper prevention, but until we do, this is going to remain a pandemic – one that has killed countless people. In the US alone, officially Covid 19 has killed more people than wars. Not A war, all wars, foreign and civil.
If we want to save the economy, we must save people. Little known fact, people ARE the economy. The more people we have that are healthy, working, and participating in the economy, the stronger the economy.
#COVID19 #LongCovid #InfectiousDisease #CovidIsNotOver #CovidIsNotMild #StaySafe