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Self-Care Advice in Coping with Covid-19 Those at the lowest risk from COVID-19 are the young, who therefore have the least incentive to take precautions. They might even benefit from developing immune protection against future coronavirus mutations. However, the more young people infected, the greater the risk they pose to the elderly or those with multiple health risks. Peter Conry, Pharmacist
Here, Peter Conry, Pharmacist, outlines his advice in effective self-care techniques for consumers strengthening their immunity. There are three types of precautions: 1. Preventing inward infection from others 2. Preventing outward infection of others 3. Boosting the body’s ability to fight/beat the infection The aim here is to slow the spread of the disease so that there are medical facilities available for those that need them – up to 20% of cases (and this doesn’t exclude the young). These are standard safety precautions to minimise the chance of contact with infectious droplets from others in the air or on surfaces and other items: 1. Preventing outward infection of others Masks – preferably tight-fitting (e.g. with metal strip to bend around nose or with foam rubber or silicon edging (to achieve the same). The best would meet FFP2 or FFP3 EU guidelines. Failing that US-standard N95 masks would do. Ignore the recent disinformation - Proper masks, properly worn, work. But “masks” aren’t all equal. You want to get face-fitting
masks and so-called respirators. However, if there’s no choice, any mask is better than no mask – you just have to try and eliminate gaps. If your glasses fog up, it’s not tightly fitted! Wear an outdoor “uniform” e.g. light, easily removable, easily washable coat for work or shopping. Think of it as your version of the surgical gowns or scrubs worn in hospitals. This coat shouldn’t come into the inside of the home (e.g. leave at door, in the car, or at work) and should be frequently washed. Try to handle the (safe) inside of the coat rather than the outside. Same policy for shoes, bags & anything else that has outside contact. Thorough hand-washing after contact with anyone or anything. By now, you know how! Gloves, especially disposable, form an additional barrier if regular hand-washing isn’t feasible. When removing, avoid contact with the outside of the gloves. Use one glove to remove the other. Then grab the top inside of the remaining glove and pull it over the first glove, sealing any infectious material inside. And still wash hands afterwards. Only touch what you have to touch. I recently witnessed two schoolgirls in Pettit’s, the local Gorey SuperValu branch. One picked up a pack of crisps at the
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till, then decided against it and put it back. Her friend said “now you’ve got to wash your hands”. Any item on a shelf or in a shop is a potential reservoir of infectious material. Don’t touch or fondle groceries. Wipe down and disinfect surfaces and items. Milton Solution (sodium hypochlorite, known as Chlorox in the US) diluted 1 in 10 is the standard. Otherwise 70% isopropyl alcohol or alcowipes with 70% isopropyl alcohol will do. Even Dettol was shown to kill the Ebola virus. Where relevant or possible, avoid unnecessary visits to risk areas. This includes GP practices. It will usually be possible to collect the next 6 months of prescriptions from the GP. And pharmacies can prepare prescriptions in advance of collection once informed by telephone. Ensure all family contacts know and follow the
same safety protocol when, for example, visiting parents. Studies on health workers during the last Ebola outbreak in West Africa showed that people drop their guard around friends and family, or when tired. Or while starting to get used to the new protective measures. 2. Preventing outward infection of others These are measures to safeguard others. You start from the assumption that you ARE a potential source of infection (e.g. if there’s even a 5% chance, such as mild symptoms of a cold). To protect those around you, take precautions at that stage. You can always relax precautions later. But don’t wait till you’re bad enough to ask for a test: Masks: Here the quality can be lower than for prevention of inward infection. Even a DIY mask made