Coronavirus: How sick will you get?

https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/04/01/coronavirus-how-sick-will-you-get/amp/?__twitter_impression=true

Excellent article. 

There seems to be no way out with this COVID-19 virus.  It's almost as if the virus likes to pick and choose who it will infect.
This stealth virus has all the makings of a cleverly mutated bio engineered product, despite science disputing this claim.  Then again, how can we be so certain of that as well?

I have an underlying autoimmune condition for which a I am currently not undertaking any immunosuppressive medications.  I still need to be careful though I'm more concerned for my mother who is a senior and what contracting this virus could do to her.

We all need to be on the lookout for our families and our own well being.

Differing opinions and some confusion on just who is spreading the Coronavirus:  "silent spreaders" a.k.a. people who are asymptomatic are at greater risk of spreading the virus.  At least that's what the science is now showing.

Did many get it wrong?  And why physical distancing has become ever more imperative.

"The best evidence around the virus that we have is that the virus is not contagious when people are not symptomatic."

But a growing body of research indicates they were wrong. In fact, people don't have to appear ill at all to infect others.

Jeffrey Shaman, a professor of environmental health sciences at Columbia University in New York, says he is frustrated when people deny that asymptomatic spread can happen.

Shaman and other researchers argue that even two months ago, officials like Tam and Hajdu should have been more open to the possibility of asymptomatic transmission, considering by that point there was a flurry of research being undertaken by scientists racing to understand how the virus was spreading so fast and far. Many of those researchers suspected asymptomatic transmission.

His research found that while undocumented cases — those with mild or no symptoms who did not have a confirmed diagnosis at the time — were only half as infectious as symptomatic ones, they were the source for nearly 80 per cent of documented cases. That's because people who feel fine are the ones out and about, travelling and interacting with more people.

Asked whether it's fair to say these so-called silent spreaders are "super-spreaders," Shaman replied: "Yes."

Dr. Allison McGeer, an infectious disease specialist with Sinai Health System in Toronto, argues while Tam's messaging about asymptomatic spread back in January "might not have been ideal," there's a good chance people would not have been onside with major restrictions to their lives before they could see proof of how serious the problem was. After all, Canada only reported its first case of COVID-19 in late January.

"There is evidence that if officials appear uncertain about things, people lose trust. They get angry. They don't follow guidance. So we put this demand on public health people to have answers when there are no answers. And that's just an impossible situation," she said.

Story:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/covid-19-silent-spreaders-1.5520006

Trump was warned as early as January that something wasn't right concerning the situation in China by U.S. Inteliugence.  In fact, it was as early as December when alarm began to sprout in earnest.  The Trump administration, namely Trump himself chose to ignore such warnings.  The original pandemic intelligence council, propped up by the previous (Obama) administration that was put in place to keep watch on outbreaks of Ebola and other potential epidemics & pandemics, was long disbanded by the Trump administration.

The fact that the United States, once a world leader, has no national nor unifying plan and is nothing more than a disorganized and rudderless mess, in what should have amounted to a concerted and direct effort to at least be somewhat better prepared & equipped to handle such a scenario, is a result of the ineptitude and volatility of it's leader in the White House.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2020/03/18/coronavirus-did-president-trumps-decision-disband-global-pandemic-office-hinder-response/5064881002/

BTW Trump's decision to halt supply shipments to Canada is very frankly, by any other name, insulting. 

https://www.politico.com/news/2020/04/03/3m-warns-of-white-house-order-to-stop-exporting-masks-to-canada-163060

Oh boy does this speak volumes!

[tweet]1244732533943799809[/tweet]

Much talk has been made about Bill Gates and his philanthropic interest in aiding against the Coronavirus pandemic.  A closer scrutiny of his foundation (& other foundations owned by billionaires such as Warren Buffet)) show enormous conflicts of interest.  Just who are these foundations really helping?


https://www.thenation.com/article/society/bill-gates-foundation-philanthropy/

The story on hospital ER visits:  they've significantly subsided due to fear of COVID-19...

"Emergency volumes have plummeted all over the country," said Dr. Daniel Kalla, the head of the emergency department at St. Paul's Hospital, in downtown Vancouver. "People are so fearful of hospitals, understandably," he said. They just aren't coming in.

Quiet ERs could be a sign that social isolation is working. Fewer people out in the world mean fewer car crashes, drunken brawls and other scourges of the ER. But doctors warn it could also foreshadow a significant problem to come.

"We're certainly hearing stories of people with abdominal pains and chest pains and all sorts of bad symptoms, like stroke symptoms, who are just not coming to the hospital because they're too afraid," said Belchetz. "It's actually somewhat of a tragedy."

For some emergency medicine doctors, meanwhile, the slowdown in admissions has created something of an unexpected lull right before what could be the most harrowing stretch of their careers. "Very fortunately, we haven't seen this big surge in the super sick, which we were prepared for, and have been expecting," said Kalla. "God willing, we'll never see it, but the next two weeks will tell."

https://nationalpost.com/news/eerily-quiet-ers-before-covid-19-surge-could-mean-problems-down-the-road-doctors-say#click=https://t.co/yiqRg0083M

Young people not immune to COVID-19 if they vape and smoke:

If you are young and think you are immune to COVID-19, some doctors would like you to pay attention to the following message:

"While COVID-19 is less likely to cause serious symptoms in younger people, in combination with substance use like vaping or smoking cigarettes or cannabis, it could pose a serious health threat," says a March 24 commentary written by Dr. Nicholas Chadi and Dr. Richard Bélanger of the Canadian Pediatric Society. 

They are among the public health experts sounding the alarm about the possible connections between lung damage caused by smoking or vaping and increased vulnerability to the novel coronavirus.

                                                        *   *    *   

"It's part of this idea that young people have that they're bulletproof, that these things are for older people. Well, this is about changing that attitude, and doing it very quickly," he said.

There is evidence that smoking not only leads to respiratory diseases and chronic lung conditions, but also suppresses and harms the immune system, "so that when people do get sick, they have a harder time fighting it," Hammond said.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/covid-19-smoking-vaping-risks-young-people-1.5512265

Doing a good deed: former Maple Leaf Thomas Kaberle & his wife Julia's Italian restaurant Quanto Basta...(yes, she's Italian)

https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/former-nhler-tomas-kaberle-delivers-food-from-wife-s-restaurant-during-outbreak-1.4875306

Is Bulk Barn open? The bulk section (candy and nuts mostly) in my grocery store has been shut down.

https://www.bulkbarn.ca/home-en/

They're open (with reduced hours, looks like 10am-6pm) but have workers doing all the scooping for you, something grocery stores probably can't handle. Although I was at a Fortinos yesterday and the bulk section was still open there.

Be careful when taking bulk items.  It's been ages that I no longer shop at a Bulk Barn Store.  My late brother and I used to do so ages ago but we eventually stopped after I felt unwell after having eaten some of these bulk foods. 
You never know if they're really hygienic with so many people scooping out and opening the containers.  Unless certain foods —chocolates, for example —and only some come pre-wrapped, I would avoid anything else.

This precaution would also apply to any other grocery store that sells bulk foods (Fortinos, etc).  Judging from what I've seen, nothing much has changed in the way bulk foods are stored.

It's up to you the individual (and if you absolutely need to), otherwise would I prefer to avoid.

Although the Bulk Barn isn't somewhere I'd visit in the current climate, it is still a business I've frequented in the past and will continue to in the future.

Having worked in the food industry for 15 years, it really drives me crazy when people blame "not feeling well" on a business. Unless you can pinpoint the salmonella you got from eating something that was contaminated, don't drag a business through the mud because you got a belly ache.

I caught a bad sore throat (several times at the time) after eating some of the food.  Coincidence or not?  I just preferred to avoid.  Not blaming anyone.

In those days, hand sanitizers were not in vogue, and I used to see people sticking their hands in the containers. 
Look at how careful we need to be today.  Now, even the exposed bread one buys at an Italian stop is wrapped in plastic, ready to go, buns included.

There was a time when people would touch bread with their hands despite the sign in front of them advising them not to do so.  Eventually people started using the provided utensil, as it is done today (pre-COVID-19).

Look, I'm not heaping anything on any business or person.  Since I've always needed to be a little extra cautious, I shied away from buying bulk.

You do what you do.  I do what I do.  Capito?

Is Bulk Barn open? The bulk section (candy and nuts mostly) in my grocery store has been shut down.

https://www.bulkbarn.ca/home-en/

They're open (with reduced hours, looks like 10am-6pm) but have workers doing all the scooping for you, something grocery stores probably can't handle. Although I was at a Fortinos yesterday and the bulk section was still open there.

Be careful when taking bulk items.  It's been ages that I no longer shop at a Bulk Barn Store.  My late brother and I used to do so ages ago but we eventually stopped after I felt unwell after having eaten some of these bulk foods. 
You never know if they're really hygienic with so many people scooping out and opening the containers.  Unless certain foods —chocolates, for example —and only some come pre-wrapped, I would avoid anything else.

This precaution would also apply to any other grocery store that sells bulk foods (Fortinos, etc).  Judging from what I've seen, nothing much has changed in the way bulk foods are stored.

It's up to you the individual (and if you absolutely need to), otherwise would I prefer to avoid.

For those of us who would like to do this, a tip on how to clean your smartphone (a worthy idea for anytime not just for now):

https://www.iphoneincanada.ca/carriers/telus/telus-clean-smartphone-covid-19/

Beautiful message from Serge Ibake & the Raptors organization ...and the scarves!

[tweet]1243685464827203585[/tweet]


https://www.thestar.com/news/city_hall/2020/03/29/stay-home-and-wear-your-scarf-how-the-accessory-became-a-weapon-in-torontos-fight-against-covid-19.html

It's best to use coconut flour instead of regular white flour, unless one opts for unbleached white flour.  Those who may have slight GI tract problems or need to whenever possible eat gluten-free would stand to benefit from flours other than wheat or white.

Coconut flour, almond flour are quite common.  Coconut flour is lighter and thus a little more digestible than almond.  There's also Quinoa, hazelnut, rice, and some others.

Just wanted to give out some tips for a more nutritious bite.🙂

Some info here:
https://draxe.com/nutrition/coconut-flour-nutrition/

Imagine...solving Rubik's cube in midair; a race car driver with no arms but deftly using his feet to steer; a near-disastrous shark attack; a helicopter stunt crash that caused nary a scratch to the pilot, etc.

Extreme situations.  Take a look...

https://youtu.be/2X-GSQA5RAQ

Just wanted to ask, what is everyone doing while at home during these heady times?  I know some of you have probably been watching some sports classics.  The Raptors platpyoff games leading up to their championship win are particularly refreshing. 

Me?  Watching t.v isn't really my thing unless there are programs that interest me.  I've been on my computer, iPad with tutorials on card making (paper crafting).  Cricut Joy, anyone? Ladies?

P.S.  Thought I'd post this as a diversion to the mundane.

Click here: (today's post)
https://www.tmlfans.ca/community/index.php?topic=5558.msg396686#msg396686