The flu is spread more easily than previously thought. New information on the spread of the influenza virus reveals that it is suspended in the air as we breathe out, especially at the onset of illness. Barrier measures are not enough: you have to wear a mask or stay at home when it starts.
People generally think that they can get the flu from being exposed to a cough, sneezing or sputum from an infected person, or from touching contaminated surfaces with their tissues or hands. But it is also transmitted more simply than that.
A new study shows that the virus is in the form of an aerosol in the air that a patient exhales, especially at the onset of the disease. This is because of the large amounts of the virus at this stage that can be found in the breaths of people with influenza. No need to cough, blow your nose or sneeze to spread it.
” We have found that people infected with the flu contaminate the air around them with the virus just by breathing, and without coughing or sneezing ”, summarizes Dr. Milton, lead author of the study. ” People with influenza generate infectious aerosols even when they do not cough, especially during the first days of the illness ”.
Advice on how to protect yourself
The study results suggest that emphasizing cleanliness, washing your hands all the time, and avoiding coughing does not provide complete protection against the flu. At the start of the infection, it is better to stay at home!
Confining patients at home at the onset of the disease, and outside public spaces, will make it possible to better fight against the spread of the influenza virus. A mask worn by the patient can undoubtedly avoid diffusing the aerosol of virus far from the patient. According to the authors, the results could be used to improve mathematical models of the risk of influenza transmission from people with infectious diseases.
Improvements could also be made to ventilation systems, to reduce the risk of transmission in offices, classrooms and the subway, for example. Meanwhile, researchers insist on staying home, if possible, especially during the onset of illness.
These data limit the effectiveness of the “barrier gestures” advocated by the Ministry of Health, but do not call into question their effectiveness.
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