BioQuakes

AP Biology class blog for discussing current research in Biology

Tag: safety

Santa isn’t bringing coal this year, he’s bringing Covid!! How to stay safe this winter.

Some feel that the Christmas spirit isn’t floating in the air this holiday season, but rather fear of the corona virus, and how it will be handled this winter. With temperatures dropping as fast as these store prices on sale, many worry how will the U.S stop cases from spiking as much as it did earlier this year? Don’t miss out on your favorite blogger Monoseanarides’ holiday special.

Spread (Overview)-

SARS-CoV-2 is a highly contagious strain of the coronavirus that spreads in multiple different ways. The virus can be spread through small particles or respiratory droplets (ex. aerosols created by the cough, sneeze, speech, and breaths of a Covid-infected patient). Once these particles are in the air, they are inhaled through the mouth or nose and enter the lungs and airways which is believed to be the most common form of infection. Droplet particles that have landed on surfaces can cause the virus to spread by touch. Once someone has touched an infected surface the disease can spread to them by touching their mouth, nose, or eyes. Spread by touch is not a primary way of transmission. When spending time with someone who has not been tested you should not be within 6 feet or 2 arms lengths of the person. Something to look out for during this pandemic is Community Spread. This is a term coined for an area where multiple people are infected with the virus and not everyone knows where the virus was contracted from. To inquire on whether or not there is a local community spread near you contact your local health department’s website. There are still a lot of questions regarding the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus including whether or not warm weather slows down the spread of the virus, and cold weather periods are where the virus spreads most like the flu virus? There is still a lot of research to be done on the virus and there is no permanent answer, but it is safe to assume that cases will start to spike again during the winter because that is when sicknesses like the flu spread best. Another question frequently asked is whether or not the virus can be spread through mosquitos and ticks like other illnesses such as the Zika virus or Lyme Disease. As of now there has been no evidence proving that the SARS-CoV-2 virus can be spread from person to person through the bite of a mosquito or a tick.

Spread (A closer look)

For all my crazy biology fans like me no need to worry I’m going to explain to you guys how the SARS-CoV-2 virus infects healthy cells. When a SARS-Cov-2 virus enters your body it latches onto one of your healthy cells’ receptors using its spiked protein surface, it usually latches to a healthy cell in the lungs. The viral proteins latch through the ACE2 receptors. The virus then travels down your respiratory tract to your lower airway where the most ACE2 receptors are present. This can cause your lungs to swell, which can make it harder to breathe. These complications can often lead to pneumonia. Once pneumonia is formed patients go into ARDS, however this only occurs in severe cases.

How the body responds-

Normally when a virus enters the body the automatic response mechanism used is innate immunity. Innate immunity is a defense activated immediately after infection. Innate Immunity is the first and second lines of defense because it is a rapid response. After the innate immunity is activated the adaptive immunity is activated. This response is slower because its job is to fight off any extra infected cells and memorize the virus so that the body is prepared for another infection. It has been seen with the SARS-CoV-2 virus (usually in older people) that cytokine storms occur when parts of the immune system overwork or works harder than other parts of the immune system.

Our Next Steps To Defeat Covid-19.

Introduction

Whether it is protection from an angry bear, a criminal on the loose, the simple flu, or for safe sex, the measures we take to ensure our safety is one of the most important steps to continue to stay healthy and safe. We must continue to educate ourselves on what actions we must take in order to keep ourselves and the people around us as safe as possible.

Recently, our society has had a lot of controversy around products like masks and their effectiveness. Although many of our methods may not guarantee complete safety, we must attempt to reduce the amount of spread of serious viruses like SARS-CoV-2.

To quickly clarify, SARS-CoV-2 is the virus that invades our bodies. When SARS-CoV-2 is able to bypass our bodies’ immune system functions and infect cells in our system, our bodies contract the disease Covid-19. If further information is desired, please refer to this study on SARS-CoV-2 and Covid-19 conducted by the US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health.

As we approach a whole year with the presence of Covid-19 in the United States of America, we must stop to reflect on our actions and see what we can do to prevent the virus from wreaking more havoc on our society. One of the most important factors for Covid-19’s ability to spread as much as it had, was the lack of proper protection techniques used by citizens of the United States of America.

Firstly, it is very important to understand how SARS-CoV-2 is able to transfer from person to person so easily. According to the CDC, The most common way for SARS-CoV-2 to spread is through people inhaling respiratory droplets, released through other people’s coughing, sneezing, talking, etc. into their own nose and mouth. Although much rarer, SARS-CoV-2 can sometimes be spread through airborne transmission and contact with contaminated surfaces.

Since breathing is a necessity to continue living, we obviously can’t perfectly avoid inhaling these respiratory droplets, but in what ways can we try to reduce the damage of possible Covid-19 cases in the United States of America…

Forms of Protection

According to the CDC, we can take very specific steps in order to reduce the spread of Covid-19.

To further elaborate on a few of these methods, we as a society must educate ourselves on the best and most efficient way to carry out these actions. One main example at the moment is mask usage in the United States of America. Despite constantly being told, I often see many citizens wearing their masks in ways that are strongly discouraged: some under the nose, some dangling from their ears, and some not on at all. Not only does this put their own bodies at risk of contracting Covid-19, but it also risks the health of others as well.

According to the articleStill Confused About Masks? Here’s the Science Behind How Face Masks Prevent Coronavirus” by Nina Bai, a study conducted by health affairs, compared the Covid-19 growth rate before and after a mask mandate. Nina  states that “the first five days after a mandate, the daily growth rate slowed by 0.9 percentage-points compared to the five days prior to the mandate; at three weeks, the daily growth rate had slowed by 2 percentage-points.” Another study conducted by Christopher Leffler, Edsel Ing and many more professionals also found that out of the 198 countries that they had observed the Covid-19 death rate of “those with cultural norms or government policies favoring mask-wearing had lower death rates.”  Through studies, we can observe the effectiveness of such resources and use these materials such as masks to the best of our abilities to help each other stay safe.

If you are in need of instruction on how to properly use a mask and other small important pieces of information. Please refer to the CDC’s article “How to Select, Wear, and Clean Your Mask”

Another term that many have learned this year, is the term “Social Distancing.” Although staying 6 feet apart from one another like the CDC has told us, it becomes very difficult for every day citizens to abide to this rule as we have a natural tendency to gravitate towards our peers, family and other people in our communities. In order to reduce spreading the virus to other people we must stay socially-distant from others to allow people to live their lives much more comfortably, especially considering that most cases of SARS-CoV-2 transfer are caused through inhaling respiratory droplets.

Another luxury many people don’t use properly is the sinks that are in our homes and bathrooms. I’ve seen way too many people use hand sanitizer instead of going to wash their hands for the recommended 20 seconds with soap and water. For many reasons, this practice can be extremely harmful if someone is trying to prevent the spread of SARS-CoV-2. According to the CDC, there are many cases where using regular hand sanitizer won’t be as efficient as a simple washing of hands with soap and water. For example, hand sanitizer is not as efficient on greasy and dirty hands: hands after handling food, playing sports, going fishing and many other activities that may lead to dirty hands. In cases as such, the CDC recommends using soap and water for 20 seconds. However, we must truly wash our hands by properly scrubbing our hands and not simply allow the water from the sink to run through our fingers and palms. The friction caused by scrubbing allows for the lifting of dirt, grease and microbes on your skin. Microbes are also extremely present under your nails which is why your parents always tell you to make sure to get your nails when you wash your hands. Without properly cleaning our hands and other parts of our bodies, we may accidentally bring harmful substances towards our face, where the virus may be able to easily enter our bodies. By cleaning our hands thoroughly and carefully, we significantly reduce the chances of spreading the virus to others and ourselves.

Biological Implication

The reason the CDC places so much emphasis on thoroughly washing your hands with soap and water, is so that we can make sure to keep our hands clean from any harmful substances. If someone were to only wash their hands with water, they wouldn’t be able to wash off all the non polar substances like grease and oil off of their hands. For this reason, we use soap to and water rather than only water. Due to water’s polar properties, it can only bond with other polar molecules. When one adds soap into their cleansing routine, there are two new parts being tossed into the mix. The hydrophilic heads from the soap attach to the water molecules and the hydrophobic tails of the molecule bond with the non polar substances such as grease and oil. The water then continues to carry the soap and harmful substances away from our hands as other water molecules pull them down with them as gravity takes its course. Soap, being made of lipids, shows versatility as it’s able to bond with both polar and non polar molecules and allows us to fully wash our hands with its polar and non polar qualities.

Conclusion

With proper masks, socially-distant people, clean hands and many other precautions we can make sure that the spread growth is reduced way more than it previously was. Scientists are still trying to figure out all the details themselves. They’re human beings and they’re bound to make mistakes as well, so we must be understanding and flexible when new studies and information prove claims that could help us reduce the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and Covid-19 even more. In these troubling times we must look out for each other and be strong yet malleable as we face hardships that many haven’t ever experienced before.

 

 

 

Protecting Ourselves Against COVID-19

How does COVID-19 spread?

According to this article by the CDC, there are two main ways the coronavirus spreads:

  • The inhalation/exchange of respiratory emissions from:
    • Coughing/Sneezing
    • Talking/Singing
    • Breathing
  • Touching a surface with the virus on it and (without washing hands) touching:
    • Eyes
    • Nose
    • Mouth

 

Preventing the spread of COVID-19

An article (source article) from Harvard Medical School explains everything you need to know about preventing the spread of the virus. Below is a summary of how to contribute to the prevention of the spread of the virus.

 

Protecting yourself and others:

In order to protect yourself and others from the coronavirus, you should avoid those who are infected and others if you are infected, wash your hands frequently with soap and water, avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands, and disinfect objects that are frequently touched daily. You should also minimize travel and time spent in crowds/close quarters.

 

Washing your hands:

Whenever your hands are dirty (ex: after using the bathroom) or are going to be near your face (ex: before eating a meal), wash them with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If you are unable to wash your hands during these times, sanitize with alcohol-based hand sanitizer. A guide for washing hands, created by the CDC, explains how to properly wash your hands in five simple steps:

  1. Run your hands under clean water until sufficiently wet, then acquire soap
  2. Rub the soap around the whole surface of your hand, between every finger, underneath every nail, etc.
  3. Keep doing this for at least 20 seconds
  4. Rinse off all the soap under clean water
  5. Dry your hands on a clean drying surface or let them air dry

 

Social Distancing:

Social distancing is when in social settings, people maintain a distance of at least 6 feet between each person. This is crucial for at least slowing down the rate of infected people, providing hospitals more time and resources to take care of infected people without being overwhelmed by a large number of patients. It’s important to note that just social distancing is not enough to prevent the spread of the virus, as respiratory emissions may linger and travel more than 6 feet when airborne. Make sure to also wear a mask and avoid the indoors and areas without air circulation while with other people.

 

Essential resources:

When grocery shopping, make sure to buy a lot of nonperishable goods to keep in case of an emergency. Make sure to wear a mask when going out, as masks prevent the spread of respiratory emissions and help prevent hands from touching faces. Wipe down surfaces such as carts and baskets before using and make sure to wash your hands after using. If you’re part of an increased risk group, try to avoid going out as much as possible.

 

Minimally useful measures:

Some individuals decide to take extra precautionary measures, but they are unnecessary for the most part. Some of these include wearing gloves and quarantining mail. In situations like these, just make sure to wash your hands after handling potentially infected objects, other measures do not help significantly.

 

Masks:

Wear a mask! The most common way the virus spreads is, as stated before, through respiratory emissions. Wearing a mask prevents these emissions from traveling throughout the environment. Even asymptomatic people may carry/spread the virus, so it is important to wear a mask no matter what. Masks should fit tightly and be worn properly, completely covering the mouth and nose. Masks are not supposed to be an alternative to the other methods of prevention but should be used in addition to the other methods.

 

Infants/Toddlers:

There is an alarming amount of young children put at risk from improper/a lack of safety measures. This article from kidshealth.org explains how to properly protect children under the age of 2 from COVID-19. First of all, babies should not wear masks. This is because since their airways are extremely small, they will have a hard time breathing and may suffocate in a mask. They may also touch their face more frequently in attempts to remove the mask, increasing their risk of infection. Since they can’t wear masks, it is important to avoid going out in public with them if possible. If unavoidable, make sure to wash or sanitize your hands before handling them and put them in a stroller with a covering.

 

An analogy based on cells and membranes:

A simple way to think about it is as if the human body were a cell. The skin is like a cell membrane and the eyes, nose, and mouth are like channels in the membrane. Wearing a mask is like closing the channels in order to keep substances out. Being in a large group of people is similar to a cell in a hypotonic solution, making it more likely for the virus to “diffuse” into your body. Socially distancing is slightly similar to a cell in a hypertonic solution, for this makes it less likely for the virus to flow into the body. To sum up, just make sure to make smart decisions, wash your hands, maintain social distancing, and wear a mask. Following these guidelines will help us protect each other until the virus is no more.

Weird ways a child can get hurt

When I was over at my cousins’ house I noticed how protective my uncle and aunt were. Everything seemed to be childproof. Nicole, my two year old cousin, is surrounded by gates and rubber corners. I was under the impression that no matter what a parent does there is always something that can hurt their kids. So when I found “Weird ways Kids can get Hurt” I had to write about it.

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By J.Smith

 

 Bouncy Castles. These tend to be at every little kids party and they seems pretty harmless, but A 2012 report in the journal Pediatrics estimated that nearly 65,000 children were treated in U.S. emergency rooms for Bouncy Castle injuries.

Circular Lithium Batteries. These batteries are being used in everything from children toys to tv remotes. These batteries are the perfect size to get lodged in your kids throat where they can burn through ones esophagus in less then 2 hours. 84% of battery related injuries come from kids  who swallowed them.

Car Seats. Many parents get these for their children as they should, but most parents don’t know that these car seats, when exposed to bear skin can cause a rash from the nylon foam in the seats.

Laundry-detergent pods. These detergents are contained in see-through bags with bright colors and can easily be mistaken for candy. Nearly half of reported injuries from detergent come from children under 5.

Shopping Cart Injuries. Over 23,000 visits to the emergency room, the result of kids playing with or on shopping carts. These carts weren’t designed to hold kids…

These are only a few of many things that tend to hurt children.

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