EXPLAINS ONE INFECTIOUS DISEASE DOCTOR.
This Is Why the U.S. Is “Losing the War” With Coronavirus, Doctor Warns!!!
As Coronavirus Surges in U.S., Some Countries Have Just About Halted It –
We Need a National Push for Everybody to Do the Right Thing.
For a brief shining moment at the end of May, Americans may have had hope that the COVID-19 pandemic was behind us. But by mid-June, the coronavirus started surging in some southern and western states. Now, just a few short weeks later, 40 out of 50 U.S. states are seeing new COVID case numbers climb again. “Put simply,
we are losing the war with the SARS-CoV-2 virus,” Mark Kortepeter, MD, an infectious disease doctor and professor of epidemiology at University of Nebraska Medical Center, wrote for Forbes.
According to Kortepeter, the “increases in new cases of infection are not surprising.” As he sees it, states that reopened more aggressively are seeing COVID surges, while “the states in the northeast that were hammered during the first wave are being a bit more cautious and seeing declining or stable numbers of cases.”
Currently, the states in the most “critical” COVID situations—according to data collected by
Covid Act Now—are Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Idaho, Missouri, and South Carolina,
most of which reopened at the end of April or beginning of May.
Kortepeter compared reopening too quickly amid the pandemic to speeding down a highway. “[If] a car in front of you stops, you will put your foot on the brakes. If you let up on the brakes too soon, you will crash,” he writes. “This is what has been occurring across the country. As businesses reopen, they have let up on the brakes.
If it occurs too quickly, a ‘crash’ is inevitable.”
The doctor, who also previously studied the Ebola virus, says a virus has one purpose: to reproduce.
“It is programmed to hijack your cells to crank out offspring, which then infect others,” he writes.
“If you let up on the brakes, the virus will take advantage of any opening you give it.”
Recently, many Americans have given coronavirus the opportunity to do just that, Kortepeter says. “If you gather with others, whether for a political rally, a protest, a drink at the local bar, a beach party with friends,
in a nursing home, or in a meatpacking plant, the virus will exploit any vulnerabilities,” he writes.
“The only real control we have is our own personal behavior.”
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So, how does Kortepeter recommend changing your behavior?
Well, he says to weigh the risk of every activity you engage in.
The riskiest, he says, involve these five things:
1. Being around a lot of people
2. Being indoors
3. Not wearing masks
4. Being physically close to people
5. Spending lengthy amounts of time in places that meet those four criteria.
The risk factors he points out align with the measures many states with COVID outbreaks are taking to reduce the spread of the virus. For example, Texas and Florida have shut down indoor bars and restaurants, while Arizona shuttered bars, gyms, theaters, and water parks. On top of that, masks are now required when out in public in four more states as of July 3. While California and Texas recently joined the list, the six aforementioned “critical” states still do not mandate that citizens wear masks across the board.
“Hoping that this problem will go away is not a plan,” Kortepeter warns.
“By ignoring the problem, the chance of our getting back to ‘normal’ gets further and further away.”
He added: “Everyone can do their part to make a difference by acknowledging their risk and
taking measures to reduce that risk.” And for behavior to be wary of, check out:
Most COVID-19 Patients Did This One Thing Before Getting Sick, Study Finds.
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An antibody cocktail is now beginning late-stage clinical trials to evaluate
the drug’s ability to prevent and treat coronavirus infection.
But so far, no single discovery has had the potential to end it. That’s why this study from UCSF’s Quantitative Biosciences Institute is so exciting: if proven true, their findings could mean an end to the virus’ reign of terror. They claim they’ve found COVID’s “Achilles heel,” and that it may be possible to stop its spread within the body by using drugs already exist on the market.
The study, which was published last week in the journal Cell, reveals that when COVID
infects human cells, it relies on a family of enzymes known as kinases in order to promote
its own spread and survival. By attaching “tiny chemical tags to proteins,” coronavirus is able to hijack those cells and reprogram them with the singular goal of multiplying.
The study, which was published last week in the journal Cell, reveals that when COVID infects human cells, it relies on a family of enzymes known as kinases in order to promote its own spread and survival. By attaching “tiny chemical tags to proteins,” coronavirus is able to hijack those cells and reprogram them with the singular goal of multiplying.
Though the researchers have not yet tested their theory in human subjects, they were “encouraged” by their findings that kinase inhibitors were effective at combating the spread
of coronavirus in cell cultures. As they shared in a press release, these treatments “exhibited potent antiviral activity without being toxic to cells, suggesting that a combination ‘cocktail’
of these drugs could prove to be an effective way to treat COVID-19.”
While the pandemic won’t truly be “over” until an effective vaccine is available for widespread use, this would be a groundbreaking achievement that could save countless lives. Until then, we’ll all need to do our part to stop the spread by socially distancing, washing our hands frequently, and wearing masks in public. And find out how you could be spreading COVID, even without any symptoms:
This Is How Much Coronavirus You Could Be Spreading Without Knowing It.
By now you know that COVID-19 is a respiratory virus mostly spread by the transmission of aerosolized droplets from person-to-person contact. Symptoms, of course, include shortness of breath, coughing, and congestion. But doctors are just beginning to fully comprehend some of the more insidious and harmful effects that COVID-19 has on the rest of your body—in both the short and long term.
New research indicates that the coronavirus attacks essentially all of your major organs, especially the brain, and can saddle your body with an incredibly long and arduous recovery—assuming, of course, that you actually recover at all. Oxford University’s Helen Salisbury, MD, wrote in the British Medical Journal on June 23 that though COVID-19 symptoms usually last around two to three weeks, upwards of 10 percent of patients will experience symptoms that persist for much, much longer—perhaps indefinitely. Read on to find out the unique effects COVID-19 has on your body. And for some more up-to-the-minute, expert-backed health advice, make sure you know the 3 New Coronavirus Symptoms the CDC Just Announced.
FRIGHTENING NEW THINGS DOCTORS SAY COVID-19 DOES TO YOUR BODY
What Happens If You Get a Severe Case of COVID-19?
1. IT AFFECTS BASICALLY ALL OF YOUR MAJOR ORGANS.
A study published in April in the journal Protein & Cell found that COVID-19 spreads by first entering the lungs and then infecting the cells lining your blood vessels—a key step in its full-body invasion that allows the viral particles to circulate throughout your bloodstream.
“We thought this was only a respiratory virus,” Eric Topol, MD, founder and director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, told Reuters recently. “Turns out, it goes after the pancreas. It goes after the heart.
It goes after the liver, the brain, the kidney, and other organs. We didn’t appreciate that at the beginning.”
It remains unclear whether or not the resulting organ damage, according to Nature, “is directly caused by the virus or by secondary complications of the virus,” but the damage is undeniable.
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2. IT REALLY TARGETS YOUR BRAIN.
“The virus can also cause neurological complications that range from headache, dizziness, and loss of taste or smell to seizures and confusion,” according to Reuters. “Recovery can be slow, incomplete and costly, with a huge impact on quality of life.”
A new study published on June 25 in the journal Lancet Psychiatry revealed that COVID-19 can even cause psychosis and lead to dementia. “What was particularly interesting was that this spanned the neurological spectrum,” senior author Benedict Michael, PhD, a neurologist at the University of Liverpool, told Stat News.
3. IT CAN CAUSE BLOOD CLOTTING THAT LEADS TO STROKES.
The Reuters article also notes that those suffering from coronavirus may experience disorders arising from blood clotting that “can lead to strokes, and extreme inflammation that attacks multiple organs.”
It’s been well reported that patients who are as young as 30 years old have experienced strokes as a result of COVID-19. As Villanova University’s Theresa Capriotti, DO, MSN, RN, explained to Healthline: “The coronavirus has been shown to cause development of [small clots that] can travel to the lung and obstruct blood flow to the lung, which is called pulmonary embolism, or travel to brain circulation and cause ischemic stroke.”
Capriotti added: “It can occur in any age group and it occurs suddenly.” And for more alarming news, check out 50 Percent of Coronavirus Patients Experience This Terrifying Side Effect.
4. PHYSICAL RECOVERY TAKES A LONG, LONG TIME—MAYBE FOREVER.
Extreme fatigue is an overlooked side effect of COVID-19. In fact, those who have had severe cases of the virus will require weeks of rehabilitation to restore their bodies. “I tell all of my post-hospital patients you’re going to be tired for a month. You’re going to be tired for six weeks,” said Stephen Cleves, MD, an internal medicine specialist, in an interview with WKRC, in late May.
But according to Oxford University’s Salisbury, writing in BMJ, there’s no guarantee you’ll even bounce back. “If you previously ran 5k three times a week and now feel breathless after a single flight of stairs, or if you cough incessantly and are too exhausted to return to work, then the fear that you may never regain your previous health is very real,” she wrote. And for more coronavirus news, make sure you’re aware of
The Rare Weather Event About to Make Coronavirus Even Worse.
BOTTOM LINE; Before We’re Screwed Over
In line with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance, as well as federal guidance
from the Trump Administration, you’re encouraged to follow these guidelines:
1. Listen to and follow the directions of your state and local authorities.
2. If you feel sick, stay home. Do not go to work. Contact your medical provider.
3. If your children are sick, keep them at home. Do not send them to school.
Contact your medical provider.
4. If someone in your household has tested positive for COVID-19, keep the entire household at home.
Do not go to work. Do not go to school. Contact your medical provider.
5. If you are an older person, stay home and away from other people.
6. If you are a person with a serious underlying health condition that can put you at increased risk
(for example, a condition that impairs your lung or heart function or weakens your immune system),
stay home and away from other people.
7. Even if you are young, or otherwise healthy, you are at risk and your activities can
increase the risk for others. It is critical that you do your part to stop the spread of COVID-19.
8. Avoid social gatherings in groups of more than 50 people.
9. Avoid eating or drinking in bars, restaurants, and food courts – use drive-thru,
pickup, or delivery options.
10. Avoid discretionary travel, shopping trips, and social visits.
11. Do not visit nursing homes or retirement or long-term care facilities
unless to provide critical assistance.
12. Practice good hygiene:
Wash your hands, especially after touching any frequently used item or surface.
Avoid touching your face.
Sneeze or cough into a tissue, or the inside of your elbow.
Disinfect frequently used items and surfaces as much as possible.
13. Practice common sense and personal responsibility.
For more information, visit the CDC’s website at www.cdc.gov/coronavirus