Babatunde40:
The virus is dwindling already globally

ursullalinda:
We need to sensitize people about the virus......so they will know the rules that apply.

Babatunde40:
The virus is dwindling already globally

Coronavirus: why should we stay 1.5 metres away from each other?

Why 1.5 metres? Is this our best, practical estimate? Or is there any solid scientific evidence to back it?

The coronavirus is spread from person to person when someone with the virus coughs or sneezes. So people in close contact are at high risk.

Respiratory droplets can land in your mouth or nose. Alternatively, droplets could land on your face, and the next time you touch your face, and then rub your eye, you could infect yourself.

We know the influenza virus is spread in a similar way. One study shows when healthcare workers are within 1.8 metres of patients with influenza, their risk of being infected is increased.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises flu can spread up to 6 feet (1.8 metres). The key message is, the closer you are, the bigger the spray.

Similar research is yet to be done on the coronavirus. But the similarity with the way influenza is spread means we can apply what we know about influenza to the coronavirus.

The recommendation of 1.5 metres is not only based on our knowledge of influenza, it is also a practical distance that allows us to go about our daily lives.

Obviously it’s not a precise measurement, nor is it absolutely guaranteed to prevent spread. But that approximate distance is better than no distance.

The lack of scientific rigour behind these recommendations is borne out in the varied advice from around the world.

The UK’s National Health Service recommends people with symptoms stay at least 2 metres away from others.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends everybody should “put distance between yourself and other people”.

Finally, the World Health Organisation advises to keep at least 1 metre between you and anyone coughing and sneezing.

So you get the general idea. Don’t get close.