March 23, Mumbai
By Anupama Nair,
“It was the best of the times; it was the worst of times,
It was the age of wisdom; it was the age of foolishness,
It was the season of light; it was the season of darkness,
It was the spring of hope; it was the winter of despair”
These are very prophetic words written more than a century ago but never have they seemed true. Twenty-Twenty was one such year when a “mere” virus held the world in its grasp.
Is it a curse that from 1720, the world has been witnessing such killer pandemics every hundred years? The Great Plague (1720-1723), killed 1,00,000 thousand people worldwide. The Cholera Pandemic (1820-1824) killed millions in Asia. In 1920 after the First World War, the Spanish Flu killed nearly 17 million people. Come circa 2020, Corona Virus has killed nearly 2.7 million people and the list goes on and on.
SARS-CoV2 originated in bats in the Middle East. It is transmitted into humans in Wuhan’s open wet meat markets. Gradually the virus spread to the whole world killing millions in its wake, destroying lives and livelihoods, etc. It is surprising to hear that this virus was discovered in 1965 and called B814. Corona or Covid 19 was many times more deadly than the SARS infection of 2002-2003. As per reports on 21st March 2021, 123 million were infected killing 2.7 million people worldwide. The United States tops the list with 29.8 million infected and 542 thousand deaths. Brazil has 12 million infections with nearly 294 thousand deaths. India is third with 11.6 million infections and 160 thousand deaths.
Symptoms
Covid-19 affects different people in different ways. Most infected people will develop mild to moderate illness and recover without hospitalization.
The most common symptoms are:
- fever
- dry cough
- tiredness
Less common symptoms:
- aches and pains
- sore throat
- diarrhea
- headache
- loss of taste or smell
Serious symptoms:
- difficulty in breathing or shortness of breath
- chest pain or blood pressure
- loss of speech or movement
Seek immediate medical attention if you have serious symptoms. Always call before visiting your doctor or health facility.
Prevention
Maintain at least a 1-meter distance between yourself and others to reduce your risk of infection when they sneeze, cough, or speak. Maintain an even greater distance between yourself and others when indoors, the further away, the better.
Make wearing a mask a normal part of your life. The appropriate use, storage, and cleaning or disposals are essential to make masks as effective as possible.
How to wear the mask?
Clean your hands before you put your mask on, as well as before and after you take it off, and after you touch it at any time.
Make sure it covers your nose, mouth, and chin.
When you take off a mask, store it in a clean plastic bag, and every day either wash it if it is made of fabric or dispose of a medical mask in a trash bin.
Safe Environment
Avoid the 3Cs: spaces that are closed or crowded or involve close contact. The risks of getting Covid-19 are higher in crowded and inadequately ventilated spaces where infected people spend long periods together in close proximity. Meet people outside. Outdoor gatherings are safer than indoor ones.
Basics of good hygiene
Regularly and thoroughly clean your hands with an alcohol-based hand rub or wash them with soap and water.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth. Hands touch many surfaces and can pick up viruses. Once contaminated, hands can transfer the virus to your eyes, nose, or mouth. From there, the virus can enter your body and infect you.
By following good ‘respiratory hygiene’, you protect the people around you from viruses, which cause colds, flu, and Covid-19.
Clean and disinfect surfaces frequently especially those which are regularly touched, such as door handles, faucets, and phone screens.
What to do if you feel unwell
It is important to know the full range of symptoms of Covid-19. Stay home and self-isolate even if you have minor symptoms until you recover. Call your health care provider or hotline for advice. Have someone bring you supplies. If you need to leave your house or have someone near you, wear a medical mask to avoid infecting others.
Vaccine
The dawn of the New Year brought a ray of hope. India is a pioneer in Vaccine development. Covaxin and Covishield are the two vaccines. We have already vaccinated millions and we have a long way to go. India is distributing vaccines to most of the countries of the world. Hopefully, the world will bid adieu to this deadly virus in the coming year.
