As of this writing there are 81 confirmed deaths in China alone from the Wuhan Coronavirus,
with 2,700 infections all across the nation.
That is of course only the deaths confirmed to be related to the virus, which can be tricky
to identify versus a severe flu or other respiratory illnesses.
The total death count could very well be higher than the 81 claimed, but what is particularly
terrifying is that the total infected count is almost certainly much greater than the
2,700 confirmed in China alone.
That's because the Coronavirus is contagious even before symptoms set in, unlike the famous
SARS virus from the 2002 SARS outbreak.
That means that you could be infected yourself right now, and spreading the infection, without
ever realizing it until finally, in about two weeks time, you start to come down with
severe flu-like symptoms and difficulty breathing.
If that's not scary enough, in one day alone the death toll for the virus jumped from 56
to 80, with 24 dead in just one day.
That means the virus is spreading at an exponential rate, and if this rate of increase continues
on its present course, we could be seeing thousands dead in as little as a month.
Likely though, this won't be the case as Chinese health authorities are taking incredible steps
to stop the spread of the virus.
Two new hospitals in the worst affected regions are already under construction, and the nation
has mobilized both its civilian medical experts and the military to stop the halt of the virus.
Unfortunately, all these incredible efforts may be too late, as the virus has not just
spread throughout China, but has made the leap across the ocean.
As of this video’s release, the virus is present in a dozen nations, including France,
Australia, Singapore, Japan, and the United States.
In the US alone over the weekend of January 24th to the 26th, the cases of confirmed infection
grew from 2 to 5, and many more are suspected to be infected and completely unaware until
symptoms begin to set in.
With the possibility of the Wuhan virus showing up in your town growing by the day, what can
you do to protect yourself?
Many authorities in China are recommending people wear face masks to prevent the spread
of the virus, though if you're looking to stop yourself from picking up an infection,
this is not a very reliable method.
Even before the Wuhan virus, the practice of wearing face masks in public has been very
popular across Asia, but the reality is that these masks will often do little if anything
to stop an airborne virus.
Simply put, this is because the masks are simply too porous to filter out viruses and
other bacteria.
Some studies have shown that the masks are effective in reducing the rate of infection,
but these were all carried out in clinical settings and have little bearing to what a
mask-user would encounter in the real world.
The one way that masks are very effective in fighting against viral outbreaks though
is in their use by those already infected, as the mask helps stop transmission.
If an infected person is around you and you're wearing a mask though, odds are it isn't going
to do much to stop you getting sick.
The American CDC refuses to recommend surgical masks be used to help fight transmission for
those individuals who are not already sick, citing a lack of evidence that they actually
help stop infection.
Instead, to combat the Wuhan virus and others like it, the CDC recommends that you simply
wash your hands regularly and use tissues every time you cough or sneeze.
Trapping airborne viral particles is far more important than trying to stop them from getting
to you with a mask, as typically people are infected orally thanks to poor hand washing
techniques anyways.
If you do use a tissue, make sure that you get rid of it as quickly as possible to limit
the chance viral particles will get on surfaces around you.
You've likely heard that when you get sick you need to pile on the Vitamin C, and if
you've been anywhere near a drug store in your life then you've no doubt seen the dozens
and dozens of Vitamin C supplements next to the cold and flu relief section.
Well, feel free to start passing on the Vitamin C for now, because science has been trying
to tell us for decades that the Vitamin C craze to fight infections is nothing but a
case of bad science and very greedy marketing.
In fact if you regularly take Vitamin C for cold and flu prevention, you're really only
helping to build up a pretty nasty case of kidney stones- a study tracking regular taking
of Vitamin C over the course of a year showed that it did not prevent cold or flu and only
lessened the duration of infection by 8% in adults.
There is no diet or supplement that is going to keep you safe from the Wuhan virus, and
instead prevention is going to be more on your physical habits than what you put in
your body.
Wash your hands regularly, especially after spending time in public, and before any meal.
If you're an international traveler, you should check with your embassy to see if they have
a field testing kit for the virus yet- currently the American CDC is working on exporting such
a kit to other nations.
You should also check ahead with your embassy in your travel destination and see if they
have any health advisories or travel warnings for the region you are visiting.
Lastly, perhaps delay your trip to China for now, as the disease is rapidly spreading outside
of the region it was first identified in.
The good news is that though the disease has shown it can kill even healthy teenagers,
its death rate is still relatively low.
You can help fight this global outbreak by acting as if you are already infected: always
cover your mouth before you cough, and cough or sneeze into tissues that can be quickly
disposed of.
If you cough or sneeze into your hands, immediately wash your hands and sanitize any surfaces
you come in contact with.
You may after all not suffer anything more than severe flu like symptoms, but your carelessness
could cost someone else their life.
We want our beloved fans to stay safe from the Wuhan virus, so we hope you practice each
of the techniques in this episode to help fight the pandemic.
For all our fans in Southeast Asia or affected countries, we want you to know that we're
rooting for you, and hope you keep safe.
Now the best way we can think of to keep you safe from the Wuhan virus is to stay indoors
and enjoy more of your favorite youtube channel, so why not click this video over here, or
if not, how about this one instead.
We promise the only viral content you'll come across with us is fun, exciting, and awesome
videos, so click now!