[ad_1]
Every Monday, the HuffPost answers questions about Covid-19 and health in general. Today they are answering the question, “If I hold my breath as I walk past people, would that help prevent me from contracting coronavirus if they had it?”
I have found myself doing this, especially indoors, since the pandemic hit and I guess a lot of others have as well. But I haven’t heard anyone talk about it so far. And the answer to the question in a nutshell: it “might help”.
From HuffPost:
“The risk of transmission when you pass someone on the street is very low, especially if you are wearing a good mask,” says Professor Jose-Luis Jimenez, an aerosol expert at the University of Colorado at Boulder.
That said, holding your breath when you pass someone “can help a bit in some very rare circumstances,” he says. For example, if you come across someone who is losing a high aerosolized viral load and their exhaled breath is rolling in your way with little dilution.
… Dr. Tang recommends that if you see someone walking towards you, it is best to take a quick breath in and then breathe out after passing them.
“Holding your breath is good, but if you breathe out it’s even better, because then you get rid of any virus,” he says.
Image by Derrick Coetzee – Flickr: Regional Ambassadors marching in Boston, CC0
[ad_2]
Source link