COVID Prevention
Precautionary measures:
A few precautionary measures include wearing masks, maintaining social distance, good hygiene practices and staying up to date with COVID-19 vaccines.
How Vaccines protect from COVID:
The development and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines have been key in saving lives and protecting people from severe illness and death, especially among those who are at greatest risk for COVID-19. There are three main methods to make a vaccine.
Myths & Facts about Covid Disease and Vaccine:
There are many myths prevailing regarding covid disease, its transmission and various alternate ways of protection and even on vaccines.
PRECAUTIONS
In addition to basic health and good hygiene practices like washing your hands, wearing masks, there are many other things you can do to protect yourself, your family, and your community from severe illness from COVID-19.
Staying up to date with COVID-19 vaccines
Getting a COVID-19 vaccine protects your body from the virus that causes COVID-19 and greatly reduces the chances of serious illness, hospitalization or death because of COVID-19.
If you have been exposed to someone with COVID-19
If you were around someone who had COVID-19, you might have been infected with it too. Start wearing a good-quality mask when you are inside with other people for 10 days, get tested, and watch for signs and symptoms.
Getting tested for COVID-19
If you have symptoms of COVID-19, you should get tested immediately. If you were exposed to COVID-19 but don't have any symptoms, you should get tested after 5 days of your exposure.
Improving ventilation
Virus particles can build up in indoor air. Improving ventilation (moving air into, out of, or within a room) can help stop this from happening.
Staying Home When You Have Suspected or Confirmed COVID-19
Even if you do not have symptoms, you can spread COVID-19 to others.
If you have symptoms, get tested and stay at home until findings from the test come.
If you tested positive for the COVID-19 infection (even if you have no symptoms), stay at home for at least 5 days and wear a high-quality mask when within the house with others.
Seeking treatment if you have COVID-19
Visit your doctor and follow the advice.
Covid Vaccines & How they protect
The development and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines have been key in saving lives and protecting people from severe illness and death, especially among those who are at greatest risk for COVID-19.
Different types of vaccines
There are three main methods to make a vaccine.
Their differences lie in whether they use-
a whole virus or bacterium
only the parts of the germ that activate the immune system
only the genetic material that provides the directions for making specific proteins (DNA/RNA) and not the entire virus.
How do mRNA vaccine protect from COVID-19
mRNA vaccines give our body cells a small piece of genetic information that tells them how to create a part of the COVID-19 virus called the spike protein.
Our cells use this information to make the spike protein.
When our immune system sees this spike protein, it recognizes it as a potential threat and learns how to fight it.
So, if we ever encounter the actual COVID-19 virus, our immune system is already prepared to defend us because it remembers the spike protein from the vaccine.
Myths and Facts
COVID-19 vaccines lead to new forms of the virus (variants).
COVID-19 vaccines do not make the virus change into different forms. They can stop new variants from appearing. The virus naturally changes over time, creating new versions (variants). When many people get the vaccine, it slows down the virus and stops new forms from showing up.3
Vaccines don’t work against Omicron.
Vaccines are the most effective way to stay safe from Omicron. Getting vaccinated helps prevent severe sickness and death caused by Omicron, just like it does for other types of the virus. When you get vaccinated, your body's defense against the virus gets stronger, protecting you from Omicron and even future versions (variants) of COVID-19 that might come up.4
Omicron is as harmless as a common cold.
Omicron is much more serious than a common cold. While the flu and COVID-19 share some symptoms like fever, coughing, and tiredness, Omicron is different. It can cause a range of health issues, from having no symptoms to a mild sickness or even the need for hospitalization or, in the worst cases, death.4
Boosters don't work well against severe Omicron illness.
Getting a booster dose helps a lot in protecting you from severe Omicron disease and other types of COVID-19. The strength of COVID-19 vaccines decreases over time, like the flu shot does. So, if you're offered a booster shot, this will increase your defense against severe Omicron disease and other forms of COVID-19.4
With Omicron being less dangerous, the end of COVID-19 is getting close.
The pandemic isn't close to being finished. To truly end the pandemic, we need many more people, especially those at risk and healthcare workers, to get vaccinated. That's the top priority.4
A COVID-19 vaccine can make me sick with COVID-19.
COVID-19 vaccines don't have the live virus that causes COVID-19. So, the vaccine can't make you sick with COVID-19. Instead, the vaccine teaches your immune system how to fight the virus that causes COVID-19. Sometimes, this process may cause symptoms like a fever. These symptoms are normal, and self limiting and show that your body is building protection against the virus.3
Being infected with COVID-19 gives better protection than the COVID-19 vaccine.
The COVID-19 vaccine is a safer and more dependable way to build immunity against COVID-19 than getting sick. The vaccine creates a stronger and more predictable defense against the virus compared to getting infected. Getting the vaccine provides strong protection for most people and even more defense for those who had COVID-19 before.3
Can COVID-19 be transmitted through mosquitoes?
COVID-19 cannot be spread by mosquitoes. It mainly spreads when someone coughs, sneezes, or comes into contact with an infected person's saliva.1
Can drinking alcohol help prevent COVID-19?
Drinking alcohol like beer, liquor, or wine won't stop you from getting COVID-19. To stay safe, wash your hands, wear masks, and stay away from people who have a fever and cough.1
Is it true that COVID-19 is transmitted in cold climates and not in hot and humid climates?
COVID-19 can spread in any weather, whether it's cold, hot, or humid. To protect yourself, always wash your hands, cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze, and wear masks, no matter where you are or what the weather is like stop COVID-19.1
Getting the COVID-19 vaccine will cause me to test positive on a viral test.
The COVID-19 vaccination will not cause a positive PCR or antigen laboratory test. This is because these tests detect only current disease. But because the COVID-19 vaccine causes an immune reaction, it may be possible to test positive for COVID-19 immunity in an antibody (serology) test.2