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New cases of Covid-19 – the disease caused by the novel coronavirus – are cropping up around the world at an increasing pace. And as the spread of the virus continues to stoke fear and apprehension in the minds of the public, the Covid-19 rumour mill has sputtered into overdrive.
Does alcohol gel kill the coronavirus? Is Covid-19 any worse than seasonal flu? And should I be wearing a face mask? Here are all the answers you need to clear up your coronavirus confusion.
Myth: Alcohol gels won’t kill coronavirus
Your hands are one of the main routes that viruses make their way from surfaces to your respiratory system, so keeping them clean is one of the most effective things you can do to stop yourself contracting the virus. Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water where possible and if you can’t get to a sink, an alcohol-based hand sanitiser will do the trick.
While the effectiveness of alcohol gels depends on the virus being targeted – which is why some alcohol hand rubs aren't very effective against norovirus – the coronavirus has an envelope structure which alcohol can attack. Hand sanitisers with more than 60 per cent alcohol content are most effective at killing microbes, but don’t try and make your own sanitiser at home. At best, it’ll probably be less effective than high-street versions and at worse you could end up severely damaging your skin.
Myth: Covid-19 isn’t more dangerous than seasonal flu
“Why aren’t people this worried about normal flu?” has been the refrain of high-street coronavirus experts since the disease first emerged at the very end of 2019. But this conflation is wrong for a number of reasons. First off, Covid-19 is more deadly than seasonal flu. The average flu strain kills about 0.1 per cent of those infected, but the Covid-19 mortality rate is much higher. Figures from Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak, put it at closer to two per cent while figures including deaths outside of Wuhan are lower.
Covid-19 also seems to spread more easily than seasonal flu. The infectiousness of a disease is defined by something called the reproduction number, which estimates how many new infections spring from each case of the virus. Each person infected with Covid-19 appears to infect 2.2 more people on average, but for seasonal flu that number is about 1.3.
Another factor that makes Covid-19 worth worrying about is the fact that it’s a totally new virus in humans. We don’t have any natural immunity or vaccines against Covid-19. And although more than 80 per cent of Covid-19 cases are mild, according to one Chinese study, this makes it more likely that it’ll spread without being detected by health authorities.
Myth: 5G can suppress the immune system and make you more susceptible to coronavirus
Phone masts are being set alight in the UK after online conspiracy theories have been falsely linking the coronavirus pandemic to the rollout of 5G. The upgraded wireless communications technology has been attributed to health problems before, including cancer, infertility and Alzheimer’s, but there is no solid evidence that the signals can have a harmful effect on humans.
Read more: Will shutting down UK schools stop coronavirus? It’s complicated
Myth: A vaccine is just around the corner
Although it took researchers just ten days to release the genome of the novel coronavirus, a vaccine isn’t likely to be ready any time soon. Vaccines have to go through numerous stages of development, including animal and human tests, until they can be widely used so it’s likely to be at least a year before a Covid-19 vaccine is available. By that time, the outbreak may have burned itself out or the disease may already have established itself as endemic.
Myth: Cats and dogs can catch coronavirus
A tiger at the Bronx Zoo tested positive for the novel coronavirus and six other big cats have developed a dry cough and loss of appetite. Domestic cats were also found to infect each other with Sars-Cov-2 according to a study from March 31, which has not yet been peer-reviewed. Cats, both wild and domestic, are known to harbour feline coronaviruses which can cause a highly fatal disease called feline infectious peritonitis (FIP). However, feline coronaviruses look very different to SARS-CoV-2 at the genetic level.
Reports of a Pomeranian dog in Hong Kong that had tested “weak positive” for the coronavirus first provoked breathless newspaper headlines in early March that pets could transmit Covid-19. Although Hong Kong authorities have confirmed that the dog's infection was probably a case of human-to-animal transmission, the dog wasn't showing any symptoms and there is still no evidence that feline or canine pets can transmit the virus to humans.
Myth: Coronavirus only infects older people
Older people and those with pre-existing health conditions tend to be hit with more severe versions of Covid-19. A study of 138 coronavirus patients at Wuhan University hospital found that the virus was more likely to affect older men with pre-existing health conditions, but young people and even children can still contract and spread the disease – especially those who are at very high risk of exposure, such as health workers.
Myth: If containment fails, we should give up entirely
As the number of case reports and deaths keeps going up, the UK has moved to the second phase of its Covid-19 response plan: delay. At the moment, health authorities’ main focus is slowing the spread of the virus and pushing it away from the winter season in order to limit the impact on already overstretched healthcare services. To this effect, prime minister Boris Johson placed the UK on a three-week lockdown on March 23 to limit the movement and interactions of people.
Myth: The virus is mutating and getting more deadly
All viruses mutate slightly when they replicate, but those mutations can end up making the virus less harmful rather than more harmful. A study from Peking University in Beijing has found that there are two common types of the new coronavirus – an L-type and S-type – but the differences between the two strains are very small. There is no evidence that the virus is becoming more deadly over time, only that it is becoming more genetically diverse – which is exactly what you would expect for a virus like coronavirus.
Myth: Drinking boiled garlic water will cure Covid-19
Consuming a bowl of boiled garlic water or lemon juice has been touted as a home remedy for coronavirus in viral social media posts. While garlic and vitamin C do indeed have health benefits, there is currently no cure or treatment available for Covid-19. Promoting unproven treatments tends to be the most common form of misinformation online and can have real, serious consequences.
In Iran, where alcohol is illegal and thousands of people have been infected, nearly 300 people died and more than 1,000 have become ill after ingesting toxic methanol to protect against the disease.
Myth: Injecting bleach or other disinfectants will cure the disease
At a press conference on April 23, US president Donald Trump floated the idea of injecting disinfectant into the body to treat coronavirus. Medical doctors were quick to denounce the suggestion and Reckitt Benckiser, the owner of the brands Dettol, Lysol, Vanish and Cillit Bang, said its household cleaning products should not be administered through "injection, ingestion or any other route." Cleaning products with ingredients such as bleach are highly toxic and potentially fatal if ingested or injected.
Is it okay to take ibuprofen to treat coronavirus symptoms?
On March 14, French health minister Olivier Véran made a blunt statement on Twitter – warning that people should stay away from using ibuprofen to treat coronavirus symptoms. Some patients in France had experienced adverse effects using non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs to treat the disease. The tweet has sparked rampant disinformation on WhatsApp and social media, but there is currently no strong evidence that ibuprofen can make coronavirus worse. Even so, the NHS is still advising that – until we have further evidence – people should avoid using ibuprofen to treat coronavirus symptoms and take paracetamol instead. If you can't take paracetamol, or are taking ibuprofen on the advice of a doctor, make sure you check with a doctor before you make any changes to your medication.
Will wearing a face mask protect against coronavirus?
For the average person, regular hand washing and social distancing are the most important defences against picking up Sars-Cov-2 – the virus that causes Covid-19. Face masks work by blocking droplets from coughs and sneezes that are the main transmission route of coronavirus, but not all masks are effective at filtering out very small particles and viruses can still enter through the eyes.
That said, governments that initially resisted recommending wearing masks are starting to soften their stance towards the practice. The scientific evidence is mixed on whether wearing masks is helpful for people in normal life, but all of Germany's states now require citizens to wear face masks while on public transport, while Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria and Bulgaria have all recommended wearing masks. Wearing masks isn't just about protecting yourself from others – it's about stopping the wearer transmitting the disease too, as well as signalling to other people that you're taking social distancing seriously. Even a simple cloth mask can help with that.
Updated 06.04.20, 14:00 GMT: The article has been updated to reflect the latest evidence on the risk to domestic animals and clarify that some alcohol gels are effective against norovirus.
Updated 23.04.20, 14:00 GMT: The article has been updated to reflect the changing national recommendations around wearing face masks.
Matt Reynolds is WIRED's science editor. He tweets from @mattsreynolds1
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
