Social Distancing Guidelines
When we are facing a global epidemic, the common man needs to get information about it.Information about your safety is the most important part of this information, but often this information also confuses people because they do not understand the meaning of the terms they are being advised to adopt. Terms such as “social distance” or “self-isolation” are similar words after the global spread of the coronavirus. Learn what it means to have social distance and self-loneliness with this BBC article and how you can be safe because of these steps.
What is ‘Social Distance’?
In the context of public health, social distance means measures that allow you to stay away from large groups of people.In the general sense, social distance means removing all unnecessary contact with other people and avoiding any unnecessary travel.
If you are socially isolated, you should disconnect or at least cut off all contact with people you do not need to meet.That means you should avoid going to public places like shopping malls, cinemas, clubs or gardens.If possible, don’t go to the office and work from home. Also, avoid traveling to a place where you can’t live without it.Even if you are meeting someone, try to be at least one meter away from them.The government of Pakistan has decided to close educational institutions, public and religious places for social distance. Punjab Health Minister Dr. Yasmeen has also told the people that the closure by the government does not mean giving them a chance to travel and have fun but it is their protection so people should stay at home.
What is Self-Isolation?
Self-isolation is a step beyond the social distance. This means isolating yourself from the rest of the world and restricting contact at home.The process is being carried out by people who have either come from a country where Corona was present or have been diagnosed with the virus by someone close to them.In addition to ordinary people, those who have adopted self-imposed isolation include the Prime Minister of Canada, Justice Trudeau, and the Foreign Minister of Pakistan, Shah Mehmood Qureshi.
‘Common sense’ measures include living in a well-ventilated room with open windows. Also, you have to stay away from the rest of the family and guests cannot come to see you.Get help if you need bargains, medicines, or other supplies. There is no problem in getting the goods with the help of friends, family, or the delivery driver.The luggage can be moved from under the door. If the goods are heavy, the giver has to leave the goods at the door. You can’t meet them.If you have decided to keep yourself separate and the home kitchen is shared, avoid using the kitchen when the other person in the house is there. Take food to your room and eat it.Although it may not be possible for you to completely separate yourself from your family or co-occupants, try your best to have a few encounters as possible with at least six co-occupants. Keep a distance of feet and sleep separately.
People who live with self-inflicted isolation should wash their hands regularly with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.You should avoid using towels and other necessities for people living in self-imposed isolation.There should be a separate toilet for them and if this is not possible then the person living in self-made isolation should use the toilet last and clean it thoroughly after use.
Also, keep in mind that self-isolation and isolation are not two names for the same thing.
Self-isolation does not require you to be ill, whereas, in the language of medical science, isolation means keeping a person with a contagious disease in complete isolation so that it does not infect a healthy person.
Self-Quarantine
The word quarantine or quarantine came from the English language into Italian. The Italian word for 40 is quarantine, while quarantine means 40 days.In the language of medical science, quarantine means the isolation and solitude of humans or animals brought in from abroad for a certain period.People who come from an area where an epidemic or contagious disease has spread but do not show any symptoms need to be kept in quarantine.The reason for keeping them separate from other people is to prevent the possible spread of the disease.Epidemiologist Dr. Mumtaz Ali Khan told the BBC that quarantine did not belong to the hospital and that the facility could be provided within the community where suspects are being examined while isolation was related to the hospital, where Treatment begins after diagnosis.According to him, during quarantine, a person is kept in a separate room who has returned from a place or country where the epidemic was already present.According to him, the symptoms of corona are monitored in quarantined people and if anyone is diagnosed with it, then such a person is transferred to the hospital and it is called isolation.
How long will social distancing last
Measures such as city lockdowns have also been reported in countries where the Corona epidemic is most prevalent.The first lockdown took place in Wuhan, China, after the outbreak. Wuhan is the city where the Corona epidemic began.After that, announcements of lockdown came out in Italy, France, and Spain, and in Italy, the whole country is facing lockdown.In Italy, the government has asked 60 million people to stay indoors. There, travel restrictions were first imposed in the northern parts of the country, after which they were extended to the rest of the country.Now one can get out of the house only in case of extreme need and in such a case they have to keep a form with them as to why they must travel. Violators could face a fine of up to 206 euros (23 235) or up to three months in prison.
In France and Spain, too, people may have to pay fines for leaving home unnecessarily. All public places there have been closed. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has declared a public emergency and told people not to leave their homes unless there is a compulsion.In Pakistan so far, only the Sindh government has announced a partial ‘lockdown’ under which all restaurants and shopping centres across the province have been closed for 15 days from Wednesday, but apart from grocery stores, vegetables and meat and other Grocery stores will remain open.According to the decision, the public park in the province and the beach in Karachi have also been closed since Wednesday, while permits for all types of gatherings have also been revoked.According to Sindh Chief Minister, government offices in the province will also be closed from Thursday, the notification of which will be issued by the Chief Secretary. In Sindh, all private and public educational institutions in the province have already been closed till May 31 as a precaution against corona. Also, wedding halls, cinemas, shrines, and shrines across the province have been closed for three weeks.
Social distancing rules
Hand sanitizing
Immediately after the recent outbreak of the coronavirus, experts urged people to wash their hands thoroughly with soap or use a hand sanitizer to keep the virus-free and prevent its spread.
But can hand sanitizers be an alternative to hand washing?
According to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the US government’s agency responsible for preventing the spread of disease, alcoholic hand sanitizers can reduce the germs on hands immediately, but in some cases do not eliminate them. Because people often do not use a lot of sanitizers or clean it before it dries.Also, according to experts, these are not a substitute for hand washing because hand sanitizers cannot clean the hands when there is grease or dirt on them, so if the hands are dirty, it is recommended to wash them with CDC soap and water. According to the CDC, they recommend the use of hand sanitizers that contain at least 60% alcohol, but also when soap and water are not available to clean hands, as harmful particles, chemicals, and only then can all kinds of germs and viruses be eradicated. Coronavirus is spreading very fast in different countries of the world and so far no proven cure has been found. Unfortunately, coronavirus treatment continues to be treated online. Some tips are useless but harmless but some are very dangerous. We’ve looked at claims of this nature widely shared online and tried to find out what science has to say about it.
1. Garlic
Several posts have been shared on the social networking site Facebook, suggesting that eating garlic can help prevent infections. The World Health Organization says that although garlic is “healthy food with some antimicrobial properties”, there is no evidence that eating garlic protects people from the coronavirus. We all know that eating fruits and vegetables and drinking adequate amounts of water is very good for health. However, no evidence eating a particular type of food will boost immunity against a particular virus.
2- Miracle Minerals
Leading YouTuber Jordan Sether has been found to claim that “miracle minerals” can completely eradicate the coronavirus. These minerals are called MMS. These minerals contain chlorine dioxide, a bleaching agent. Sether and his colleagues began promoting the mineral long before the coronavirus spread. In January of this year, he tweeted that “Chlorine dioxide not only effectively kills the cancer germs but also the coronavirus.”Last year, the US Food and Drug Administration warned of the health risks of drinking these minerals. In other countries, health officials have issued alerts. The agency added that drinking these minerals could cause symptoms such as nausea, diarrhea, cholera, and severe dehydration.
3- Home-made disinfectant solution
There have also been reports of a shortage of hand sanitizers in various countries. The main reason for this is that frequent hand washing is a great way to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.When news of the shortage began in Italy, recipes for such antiseptic solutions went viral on social media.But many of these recipes can help clean the surface of objects on the ground or in the home, but as scientists have said, they are not at all the subject of human skin. Alcoholic hand gels usually contain ingredients that keep the skin soft, supple, and fresh.
Sally Bloomfield, a professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, says she can’t believe you can make such an effective disinfectant solution at home. The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention says that home-made disinfectant solutions are effective for various levels of hygiene.
4- Potable Silver (Silver)
Colloidal silver is the fine metal particles in any liquid. A guest at the event claimed that the solution was capable of killing a few germs of the coronavirus within 12 hours. However, the guest also admitted that the solution has not been tested on COVID 19. It was widely rumoured on Facebook that “the solution may be useful in the treatment of corona.” And it was at the forefront of groups spreading scepticism about mainstream medical advice. See from Proponents of this solution claim that it can cure all kinds of ailments because of its antiseptic properties. They also say that the solution improves the immune system. But US health officials have made it clear that there is no evidence that this type of silver can be effective in treating any disease.Most importantly, its use can have many harmful effects on health, such as kidney damage, seizures, and arrhythmias (a disease in which the skin turns blue).
5- Trudy Long
University of Oxford professor Trudy Long says there is no such thing as a biological mechanism that supports the idea that you can just drink water and pass the virus from your mouth to your stomach and kill it.Also, drinking good and adequate amounts of water is good for your health.
6- Of course hot, but avoid ice cream
Also, many other tips suggest that heat eliminates the virus or drink very hot water or take a bath with hot water and even use a hairdryer. Social media users in various countries have shared a post saying that it was released by UNICEF, although this is not the case at all. The message in this post is that using hot water and being exposed to the sun as much as possible can kill the virus. It is also said to avoid eating ice cream. Charlotte Gorintzka, who works at UNICEF to crack down on misinformation about the coronavirus, says: Is a means of protection from, of course, that’s not true. “According to Professor Bloomfield, keeping your body warm or exposed to the sun as much as possible, simply so that your body does not become infected with the virus, is completely ineffective. Once the virus enters your body, there is no way you can kill it. Yes, once the virus enters your body, your immune system fights it and kills it. We all know that the flu virus cannot survive outside the human body in hot weather, but we do not know at all how heat affects the new coronavirus. Professor Bloomfield added that outside the human body, “you need a temperature of about 60 degrees Celsius to kill any virus immediately.” And it’s much hotter than any hot water bath. “
However, it is a good idea to use warm water up to 60 degrees Celsius to wash bed sheets and towels, as this will eliminate the virus in the clothes. However, washing human skin with such hot water is not a good idea. Another thing is that taking a hot bath or drinking hot drinks does not change your body temperature. Even after drinking hot drinks or water, the temperature of the human body remains the same as before that you are not already sick.This article is written with the help of additional research from BBC Monitoring.
