8 Ways to Protect Yourself Against the Mutated COVID-19 Variants
How to protect yourself against the new variants
The best defense against the coronavirus, including these new variants, is to avoid or keep exposure very brief. “The new strains are thought to have spike proteins, which are ‘open’ longer than the original, allowing them to enter human cells more efficiently, thus making them more infectious,” explained Dr. Braunstein. “This means that transmission would require a smaller number of viral particles to spread the infection from one person to another.”
Due to their higher transmission rate, it is paramount that people be more alert and careful with what they do and who they meet outside their household. Here are a few things you can do to stay on the safe side.
Follow the ABC approach
According to microbiologist Jason Tetro, an efficient method for you and your loved ones to stay safe is the ABC approach, a prevention method that was used to keep measles from spreading before the development of an effective vaccine.
Until two-thirds of Americans have been vaccinated, “we need to follow the ABCs so that we can keep the spread as low as possible,” Tetro said. What exactly are the COVID-19 ABCs?
Airway: Protect yourself with face masks.
Bubble: Only meet with people who you trust to stick to social distancing and safety rules, just like you.
Contacts: If someone you know becomes infected with COVID-19, it’s easy to trace other contacts. You could use one of the contact tracing apps that have been developed in recent months.
