Social Distancing 'Not Enough' To Cut COVID-19 Risk Indoors: Experts
India is witnessing a sudden spike in the number of coronavirus cases in the second wave of COVID-19, with states from across the country registering the highest number of new cases of infection each day. The only way to break the transmission thread is by making sure that everybody is following the safety protocols properly. But, what about people who are sharing the same roof? Are they protected from transmission just by maintaining social distancing? A new study has shown that you may still be at risk of contracting the COVID infection even after you are properly maintaining a distance of two meters with your colleagues at work, co-passengers in public transport.
Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in the US, stated that the two-meter rule was originally developed when the prevailing belief was that Covid-19 transmission occurred solely through heavier droplets projected from the mouth and nose during speech, coughing, and sneezing.
However, scientists have now been increasingly speaking about the role of aerosols, smaller particles that linger in the air longer, in Covid-19 transmission. "The importance of airborne transmission of Covid-19 is now widely recognized," researchers, including Martin Z Bazant, from the varsity's Department of Chemical Engineering, were quoted as saying.
The study, published in the journal PNAS, showed that the amount of time that it is safe to spend in an indoor space depends on a number of factors, such as:
"To minimize the risk of infection, one should avoid spending extended periods in highly populated areas," the researchers stated. He further added, "One is safer in rooms with large volume and high ventilation rates. One is at greater risk in rooms where people are exerting themselves in such a way as to increase their respiration rate and pathogen output, for example, by exercising, singing, or shouting."
The team developed a theoretical model based on airborne transmission that offers an understanding of how long can an uninfected person be safe in an indoor location with an infected person. They also looked at how different respiratory activities, such as singing, speaking, and breathing, contributed to the overall amount of exhaled particles, and thus the potential amount of pathogens expelled.
As discussed above, various other factors are responsible that can effectively help the virus to spread from one body to another. In order to pause this transmission here is what one need to do:
Also, try to stay inside the home as much as possible. The new coronavirus wave has infected many and is still lingering over the country. Stay alert, stay safe.
