BY JEN
CARLSON MARCH 3, 2020 3:08 P.M.
Recently, a letter began circulating online
that Dr. James Robb—a pathologist who describes himself as "one of the
first molecular virologists in the world to work on coronaviruses"—had
shared privately on his Facebook page. In it he addressed his friends and
family, writing, "The current projections for [COVID-19's] expansion in
the US are only probable, due to continued insufficient worldwide data, but it
is most likely to be widespread by mid to late March and April." He goes
on to list off "what I have done and the precautions that I take and will
take."
While it provided some common sense tips that
you've likely seen elsewhere by now, it also highlighted what Robb believes to
be an important item to have on hand: zinc lozenges.
Stock up now with zinc lozenges. These
lozenges have been proven to be effective in blocking coronavirus (and most
other viruses) from multiplying in your throat and nasopharynx. Use as directed
several times each day when you begin to feel ANY “cold-like” symptoms
beginning. It is best to lie down and let the lozenge dissolve in the back of
your throat and nasopharynx. Cold-Eeze lozenges is one brand available, but
there are other brands available.
It's nearly impossible to find a drop of
Purell at this point, and now zinc lozenges are equally difficult to
score. According to Snopes,
"This portion of the letter apparently resulted in memes suggesting the
product Cold-Eeze was a 'silver bullet' that would 'kill coronavirus,'"
but that is not quite the case, says Robb.
He told the site, which confirmed Robb's
background credentials, "In my experience as a virologist and pathologist,
zinc will inhibit the replication of many viruses, including coronaviruses. I
expect COVID-19 [the disease caused by the novel coronavirus] will be inhibited
similarly, but I have no direct experimental support for this claim. I must add,
however, that using zinc lozenges as directed by the manufacturer is no
guarantee against being infected by the virus, even if it inhibits the viral
replication in the nasopharynx."
Robb's other tips include:
1. NO HANDSHAKING! Use a fist bump, slight bow, elbow
bump, etc.
2. Use ONLY your knuckle to touch light switches,
elevator buttons, etc. Lift the gasoline dispenser with a paper towel or use a
disposable glove.
3. Open doors with your closed fist or hip - do
not grasp the handle with your hand, unless there is no other way to open the
door. Especially important on bathroom and post office/commercial doors.
4. Use disinfectant wipes at the stores when they
are available, including wiping the handle and child seat in grocery carts.
5. Wash your hands with soap for 10-20 seconds
and/or use a greater than 60% alcohol-based hand sanitizer whenever you return
home from ANY activity that involves locations where other people have been.
6. Keep a bottle of sanitizer available at each
of your home's entrances. AND in your car for use after getting gas or touching
other contaminated objects when you can't immediately wash your hands.
7. If possible, cough or sneeze into a disposable
tissue and discard. Use your elbow only if you have to. The clothing on your
elbow will contain an infectious virus that can be passed on for up to a week
or more!
Please skip ahead to the 6:25 mark of this John Oliver coronavirus
segment for a handwashing banger. Here's the full song,
courtesy of the Vietnam Dept. of Health.
And here's the TikTok dance, because it's
important to still have fun.
Back to the tips — Robb also recommends
stocking up on the following:
1. Latex or nitrile latex disposable gloves for use when going shopping, using the
gasoline pump, and all other outside activity when you come in contact with
contaminated areas. Note: This virus is spread in large droplets by coughing
and sneezing. This means that the air will not infect you! BUT all the surfaces
where these droplets land is infectious for about a week on average -
everything that is associated with infected people will be contaminated and
potentially infectious. The virus is on surfaces and you will not be infected
unless your unprotected face is directly coughed or sneezed upon. This virus
only has cell receptors for lung cells (it only infects your lungs). The only
way for the virus to infect you is through your nose or mouth via your hands or
an infected cough or sneeze onto or into your nose or mouth. [Note:
There are some contradicting statements here, but common sense would suggest
you want to wash your hands because of potentially contaminated surfaces, and
distance yourself from anyone who appears sick.]
2. Stock up now with disposable surgical
masks and use them to prevent you from touching your nose and/or mouth
(We touch our nose/mouth 90X/day without knowing it!). This is the only way
this virus can infect you - it is lung-specific. The mask will not prevent the
virus in a direct sneeze from getting into your nose or mouth - it is only to
keep you from touching your nose or mouth.
3. Stock up now with hand sanitizers. The
hand sanitizers must be alcohol-based and greater than 60% alcohol to
be effective.
4. Stock up now with zinc lozenges.
These lozenges have been proven to be effective in blocking coronavirus (and
most other viruses) from multiplying in your throat and nasopharynx. Use as
directed several times each day when you begin to feel ANY
"cold-like" symptoms beginning. It is best to lie down and let the
lozenge dissolve in the back of your throat and nasopharynx. Cold-Eeze lozenges
is one brand available, but there are other brands available.
Of course, the real issue right now is that
the companies that make these products were not prepared for the sudden demand.
And it's not just Amazon that's out of stock, in New York City, brick and
mortars have been seeing empty shelves. You still
may have some luck, however; several Gothamist staffers were able to purchase
Purell at a pharmacy today (travel size, $1.99 each, two per customer).
We've reached out to Purell to find out when
they expect people will start seeing it available again, and will update when
we know more.
UPDATE from Purell, 4 p.m.: "We are seeing increased demand for
our hygiene products, including hand sanitizer, hand soap, hand sanitizing
wipes, and surface disinfectant spray. We have increased production
significantly and our team members are working hard to ensure people have the
products they need. We have a surge preparedness team that runs in the
background all the time, who have been fully activated and are coordinating our
response to the increase in demand."
Speaking to its effectiveness: "The
FDA does not allow any manufacturers of hand sanitizer or soap to answer
questions about the efficacy of these products against coronavirus or any
virus." However, they add, their Surface Disinfectants "have
demonstrated effectiveness against a strain of human coronavirus. While
COVID-19 is a new strain of coronavirus, under the EPA’s Emerging Pathogen
guidance, our Purell Surface Spray can be used to kill COVID-19 on hard,
non-porous surfaces when used in accordance with the directions and a 1-minute
contact time."
As for COVID-19 being "reasonably
contained," Robb says, "I personally do not think it will be. Humans
have never seen this snake-associated virus before and have no internal defense
against it. There will be NO drugs or vaccines available this year to protect
us or limit the infection within us. Only symptomatic support is
available."
Health officials maintain, however, that a
majority of people will experience mild symptoms.
Some additional helpful links:
·
Food52 provided a helpful list of staples to stock up on.
·
NYMag got tips from
Juliette Kayyem, a faculty chair of the global health and security project at
Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, about preparedness—she noted: "The
first 72 is on you: If you can, you should have on hand what you would need to
live self-sufficiently in your home for three days, as you wait for a
government disaster response to ramp up."
·
OregonLive provided a
recipe for making your own hand sanitizer.
·
Here's the latest information from the city.
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