COVID Transmissions for 12-4-2020
When will you get the vaccine?
Good morning! It has been 383 days since the first documented human case of COVID-19.
We took it a little easier this week, and I’d like to send you into the weekend with an optimistic sense. Things may be bad and getting worse in the US right now, but they WILL get better when vaccines start to be deployed. Have a nice weekend and think of better times.
As usual, bolded terms are linked to the running newsletter glossary.
Keep the newsletter growing by sharing it! I love talking about science and explaining important concepts in human health, but I rely on all of you to grow the audience for this:
Now, let’s talk COVID.
Estimating your place in line for a vaccine (in the US)
The New York Times has an interactive opinion piece that estimates where you may be in line for getting a vaccine if you happen to live in the US: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/12/03/opinion/covid-19-vaccine-timeline.html
I think it’s interesting, but please keep in mind it’s still just opinion; it’s not clear how long this is all going to take or what order the line will be, except that healthcare workers and patients in nursing homes will almost certainly be at the front of it.
Personally, I’m at the back of the line and I’m perfectly happy to be there. I intend to enthusiastically get the vaccine after I have read the safety information in its package insert, as soon as my turn comes up.
New CDC guidance “shortens quarantines”
CIDRAP and a few other outlets have reported on this: https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2020/12/cdc-shortens-covid-quarantine-adds-holiday-travel-advice
This guidance changes things in small ways. Specifically, quarantines for people who have tested positive have been shortened to 10 days if they do not experience symptoms; this is in line with the 10 days from symptom onset that were already recommended for symptomatic cases. Not a huge change. Also, 7 days of quarantine are recommended if a patient tests negative initially. Again, not a major change.
Also, the CDC has recommended not to travel, or at least to shorten any travel, for holidays in December.
This is all pretty sensible advice and should be listened to. I hope that’s how it turns out.
What am I doing to cope with the pandemic? This:
Making the most of my time at the gym
One thing that I’ve emphasized throughout the pandemic is the importance of exercise. Quite some time back, I shared a Norwegian study indicating that it is relatively safe to return to gyms if there is a low amount of local COVID-19 spread, and if certain safety protocols are observed: https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/06/it-s-safe-go-back-gym-if-there-s-little-covid-19-around-study-suggests
Living in New York City, and going to the gym that I go to, I’ve found that all of these conditions are satisfied, so I go to the gym. When it was warmer, I went once a week and did the rest of my exercise outside. Now that it is colder, I am changing things up a little bit. Instead of exercising every day, with one day a week inside, I am inside more often. For that reason, I am trying to go at light-traffic times for the gym, on alternating days, and spending more time there during those windows. This minimizes the number of opportunities for exposure I have each week as well as the number of people I am around.
While I believe it’s safe to be there under the constraints applied, there is always risk. Therefore, I am making my best efforts to minimize my own risk as well as any risk that I may pose to others.
On this schedule, I’ve still been able to make a lot of gains and get into better shape. It’s noticeable, and I’m happy with my progress. It hasn’t been fast, but I do feel healthier and better. If it’s a possibility for you, I really recommend it.
You might have some questions! Send them in.
Join the conversation, and what you say will impact what I talk about in the next issue.
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This newsletter will contain mistakes. When you find them, tell me about them so that I can fix them. I would rather this newsletter be correct than protect my ego.
Though I can’t correct the emailed version after it has been sent, I do update the online post of the newsletter every time a mistake is brought to my attention.
No corrections since last issue.
See you all next time.
Always,
JS
So .... what exactly do you do at a gym that you couldn't do, or do the equivalent of, at home? For a few bucks you can get some resistance tubes for anaerobic exercise and a mat for bodyweight stuff. Cheaper than the gym and (if you're interested mostly in health) just as effective, and you don't risk getting or spreading a deadly virus.
I"m not judging, I'm wondering what your reasoning is, because you inevitably knew everything I just posted. You're smarter and better-educated than me, after all. (Hi, this is Carl from that panel at Philcon.)