The world is battling a coronavirus pandemic for which there is no cure. The United States’s strategy is to practice good hygiene and social distancing to try to limit the virus’s damage and destruction.
While frequent hand washing, carrying hand sanitizer, limiting going out in public, and standing at least six feet away from other humans make sense, they’re not the only ways people can protect themselves and make the virus less destructive.
Here are five more small steps everyday people can take to help negate coronavirus’s impact.
1. Wear Masks
In recent days, there has been a greater push for the public to start wearing some sort of face-covering in public — an issue complicated by a shortage of masks.
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that sick individuals and health care workers wear face masks, but had not made the same recommendation for the general populace until Friday, April 3.
However, Dr. Donald K. Milton, an expert in environmental and occupational health at the University of Maryland, told the New York Post that masks would likely help the public.
“The argument is that since anyone can be infected without knowing it and spread the infection, that everyone should wear masks,” Milton said. “In the US, where we are not prepared to test rapidly and aggressively trace and quarantine all contacts, surgical masks could be helpful.”
Federal health experts on Friday, April 3 reversed course and recommended that even Americans who don’t work in health care should wear a mask in public.
2. Wear Glasses
One overlooked aspect of coronavirus is how it can infect someone touching his eyes.
It’s something people who wear contact lenses do at the beginning and end of each day to put their lenses in and take them out.
“Consider wearing glasses more often, especially if you tend to touch your eyes a lot when your contacts are in. Substituting glasses for lenses can decrease irritation and force you to pause before touching your eye,” Dr. Sonal Tuli of the University of Florida told the American Academy of Ophthalmology.
Additionally, the Academy noted that glasses serve as a useful, although imperfect, shield against airborne respiratory droplets. They also mentioned wearing sunglasses as a means of protection.
3. Wear Gloves
Gloves have the same problem as one’s hand: they can get covered in germs.
Since coronavirus enters the body through one’s eyes, mouth, or nose, having it on one’s hands or gloves sounds like it might not make a difference.
However, there is one reason why it does, as Wendy Wood, provost professor of psychology and business at the University of Southern California, told Stat News.
“If people are to wear gloves and glasses, they are less likely to touch their faces,” she said.
4. Clean Cell Phones
There are constant reminders to handwash frequently and use hand sanitizer, but one of the dirtiest objects one touches on a daily basis could be their cell phone.
The virus can live on a surface for up to three days, so the CDC recommends that people clean their “high-touch” surfaces on a daily basis.
According to CBS News, Apple recommends using Clorox wipes or 70 percent isopropyl alcohol wipes to clean their iPhones effectively. Apple recommends shutting the cell phone off and unplugging it when cleaning.
5. Consume Vitamin C
Although it is known to help boost one’s immune system, there is no evidence that Vitamin C prevents someone from getting coronavirus. So why is it still important?
When it comes to coronavirus, if someone has a high blood pressure they are 6 percent more likely to die from the disease when compared to the rest of the population, according to WebMD
That said, while Vitamin C will not cure the virus, it could improve one’s survival odds if infected.
