Halloween 2014: Are Ebola-themed costumes a bad idea?

Ahead of Halloween, BrandsOnSale.com displayed a Halloween costume for sale on its website, which had the most obnoxious headline 'Sexy Ebola Containment Suit'. The so called 'most viral Halloween cos

By: Shraddha Rupavate | | Updated: October 29, 2014 3:52 pm

Ahead of Halloween, BrandsOnSale.com displayed a Halloween costume for sale on its website, which had the most obnoxious headline ‘Sexy Ebola Containment Suit’. The so called ‘most viral Halloween costume of the year’ (as described on the website) includes a white dress, goggles, face mask, and knee-high socks, blue gloves for women and white hamzat suit along with plastic goggles, face shield and gloves for men. The costume priced at $59.99, was live on the website on October 8, and has sold about a dozen pieces since then. Also Read - Ganesh Chaturthi 2020: 4 reasons an eco-friendly Ganesha is good for you

In an interview with the Johnathon Weeks, CEO of mega-costume company BrandsOnSale, the Atlantic quoted Weeks saying ‘You can go on any website for a zombie mask for an eight-year-old with cuts and scars all over their face. It’s Halloween, it’s one day, if people are that serious about it, they don’t know what Halloween is about. The Ebola costume is actually a great deal. Besides the description clarifies that the suit is not to be used as a preventative measure ‘This is not to be used as a real Ebola suit.’ Also Read - 7 reasons why the #BeefBan is good

Halloween is no doubt celebrated with great enthusiasm in the US, giving an opportunity to businesses and creative costumes ideas to sell. But that does not mean one can play around with an international crisis. Besides, using Ebola as a theme for Halloween, when more than 5,000 people in West African countries lost their lives and more than 10,000 have been infected by it not only disturbing but also disrespectful to health workers tackling the outbreak in West Africa. Also Read - Weight loss diet: How to eat healthy in a restaurant when you want to lose weight

Before, planning a Halloween party with Ebola as a theme, think about its consequence and its potential to convey the wrong message. Ebola is a deadly disease that the world is fiercely battling against and NOT a Halloween theme or a ‘sexy costume’ meant to gain popularity and attract the crowd to party hard.

What is Ebola virus disease?

The Ebola virus disease (EVD), formerly known as Ebola hemorrhagic fever is a severe condition caused by a virus from the Filoviridae family. According to scientists there are five different types of the virus, all of which have the potential to infect humans.

What are symptoms of Ebola virus disease?

The incubation period (or the time between when the actual infection takes place to the time when a person sees symptoms of this condition) for this disease is about one week. After this period a person will commonly see the signs that are considered as ‘early symptoms’.
According to Dr Ratan, the early symptoms include –

Fever
Rashes
Headache
Nausea
Vomiting
Stomach pain

Apart from that a person may also experience symptoms like pain in the lower back, arthritis like pain all over the body, diarrhea and a sore throat. Read more about Ebola virus- causes, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, prognosis and prevention

Photo source: BrandsOnSale.com

Published : October 29, 2014 12:48 pm | Updated:October 29, 2014 3:52 pm

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