You, in the course of seeking knowledge about how to prevent yourself and family from COVID-19, have been told a lot of lies and you probably believed some or all of them. Platforms Africa takes the pain through various documents and interviews with experts to debunk 11 of the terrible lies government officials and opinion leaders tell, which have been found to be the major cause of panic among the people.
Many researchers particularly those of the University of Maryland, United States, say that the World will live with COVID-19 for months. Head of Infectious Disease Clinic at the University, Dr. Faheem Younus, who particularly insisted that the viral infection would not disappear immediately no matter what anyone does, added that no one needs to panic after knowing how to truly prevent the infection.
Unfortunately, millions of people in Africa and across the World who genuinely craved information about how to prevent the novel virus are in panic mode as a result of lies they probably have been told. Here are 11 of them;
#1. If you don’t have a Covid19 patient at home, there is no need to disinfect the surfaces in the house. Washing hands and keeping a distance of 1.8 meters is the best method of protecting against the virus.
#2. You cannot destroy Covid19 viruses that have penetrated the cells by drinking too much water, you will just go to the toilet often.
$3. The virus will not reduce its effect in the summer. It’s summer in Brazil and Argentina, but the virus is spreading rapidly.
#4. Cargo packages, petrol pumps, shopping carts or ATMs do not cause infection. Wash your hands, live your life as usual. Covid-19 is not a food infection. This is associated with drops of infection like flu. There is no documented risk of Covid19 being transmitted by ordering food.
#5. Entering the sauna does not kill Covid19 viruses that have penetrated the cell. You can lose your smell with many allergies and viral infections. This is a non-specific symptom for Covid-19.
#6. Once we get home, we don’t need to change clothes and shower urgently. Purity is a virtue, not paranoia. Covid-19 virus does not hang in the air. This is a drip infection that requires close contact. The air is clean, you can walk around the gardens (keeping the distance) in the parks.
#7. Covid-19 does not separate race or religion, it is passed on to all people.
#8. It is enough to use normal soap against Covid-19 by not necessarily using antibacterial soap. The virus is not a bacteria anyway.
#9. You don’t have to worry about your food orders. But if you want you can heat it up a bit in the microwave. The chance to bring Covid-19 home with your shoes and getting sick is the same as getting hit by lightening twice a day. I’ve been working against viruses for 20 years, drip infections don’t spread like this, Dr. Younus said in a tweet.
#10. You cannot be protected from the virus by drinking / eating vinegar, sumac, soda and ginger.
#11. Wearing gloves is a bad idea, the virus can accumulate on the glove, it can easily be transmitted if you touch your face. It’s best to wash your hands.
We will live with Covid19 for months. Let’s not deny it or panic: Dr. Faheem Younus
This is the third major Fact Check in the series done by Platforms Africa.
(Platform Africa)
