CNN The coronavirus variant that first originated in the United Kingdom is now the dominant variant in the United States.
The B.1.1.7 variant of SARS-CoV-2 is present in all 50 U.S. states and contributes to the increase in coronavirus infection, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It not only seems to be more transferable; some research also suggests that it can cause worse diseases, putting more people at risk for hospitalization and death.
What should people do to protect themselves from this more contagious variant? We have CNN’s medical analyst, dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician and visiting professor of health policy and management at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health. She is also the author of the upcoming book “Lifelines: A Doctor’s Journey in the Fight for Public Health.”
CNN: What else should we do now that the B.1.1.7 variant has become dominant in the United States?
Dr. Leana Wen: The B.1.1.7 variant is more transmissible than the previous strains, which means we need to be even more careful. Some activities that we previously thought were low risk, such as going to the grocery store and taking public transportation, have a higher risk of virus transmission. Those who used to have a high risk – such as going to indoor pubs or gathering in large crowds – are now even higher.
We need to be even more vigilant than before. For example, if you are going to eat outdoors in a restaurant, make sure you comply with the CDC guidelines and that there are at least 6 feet between the tables. Those who have not yet been completely vaccinated should wait until they are vaccinated before going to eat near someone at the table.
That said, this variant is distributed just like other variants. The same measures we used in the past to prevent the spread of coronavirus are now still in force. This means wearing a mask in public, doing physical distance and avoiding indoor gatherings with people who are not in your home.
It is even more important than ever to be vaccinated as soon as it is your turn.
CNN: Do the vaccines work against this variant?
Win: Yes – and that’s really an important point. All vaccines currently approved provide good protection against B.1.1.7 (remember that no vaccine is 100% effective, but being vaccinated against Covid-19 means you have a much lower risk of getting the vaccine). contract disease and become seriously ill as a result of It). There are other variants against which the vaccines may be a little less effective. However, vaccinations are still the critical tool to prevent these other variants, and still other variants that may develop in the future.
Viruses mutate when they recur. The best way to prevent viruses from mutating is to stop the spread. We help slow down and stop the spread if we are vaccinated.
CNN: What about this variant that makes it particularly dangerous for young people?
Win: In recent weeks, we have seen younger people get infected in higher relationships. This includes teenagers as well as people in their twenties, thirties and forties. This is probably due to a combination of factors.
Older people are the ones who are vaccinated first and therefore more protected. Many younger people have not been vaccinated yet, and given their increased level of activity, they are likely to be more infected if there is a more contagious variant. There may also be something to B.1.1.7 that makes it easier to attach to the respiratory system and that people can carry more viruses, which may make them more ill and also more contagious to others.
All of this suggests that it is not so much that the virus preferentially attacks younger people in one way or another, but younger people are more vulnerable because many have not been vaccinated.
CNN: What should we do to prevent ourselves from becoming infected by this more communicable variant?
Winning: For people who are not vaccinated, they should try to be vaccinated as soon as possible. This is the best defense against this variant – and others.
Before they can be vaccinated, they need to double all the precautions. Again, this means wearing a mask in all public places. Studies have shown that it helps to wear two masks – a well-fitting cloth mask on top of a surgical mask. I wear two masks like this or an N95 mask in a higher risk environment, such as when using public transportation or attending church services indoors with many people around you.
Try to avoid the most risky settings where people are not wearing their masks, such as indoors. Socialize just outside, with members of different households separated at least 6 feet apart.
CNN: The CDC specifically singled out youth sports as a driver of infections. Should it stop?
Win: It’s true that there have been outbreaks of youth sports in Michigan and Minnesota, among others. With this more transmissible B.1.1.7 variant, and the fact that juveniles under 16 cannot yet be vaccinated, it is best to be careful.
Sports that can be played outdoors will be much safer than those that are played indoors. Contact sports such as wrestling will be much higher than for example football or lacrosse. Players must wear masks at all times if the physical distance cannot be maintained. Regular supervision tests of all players can help – for example, if everyone is tested twice a week to see if there are any symptoms.
It is very important for parents to monitor informal settings as much as formal settings. You do not want all the precautions to be followed during organized sports, but that it should be transferred to the pizza party only after the match. Or that the student-athletes let their hats down and transmitted the virus in the locker room when everyone gathered there for long periods of time, without masks.
Ideally, these types of social interactions are tentatively limited, with strict precautions to prevent virus spread and to make as much as possible of the actual sport – and the school of the school – possible.
CNN: What about people who have been fully vaccinated – should they still be so careful?
Win: The vaccines we have work very well against the B.1.1.7 variant. People who have been fully vaccinated should know that they are very well protected against this strain. ‘Fully vaccinated’ means that it is at least two weeks after someone has received their vaccinations.
Nothing is 100%. What people choose to be vaccinated first depends on their values and their choices. Once vaccinated, activities that were previously high risk will have a lower risk, but there is still some risk. It should be weighed against the benefit of these activities.
The CDC says that people who are fully vaccinated can see each other and that they can visit other households with non-vaccinated family members, as long as the people who are not vaccinated are at high risk for serious outcomes of Covid-19. It is definitely necessary to wear masks in public places, even after being vaccinated, and to reduce time in high-risk settings, such as inside pressure people with non-vaccinated.
I pleaded for the idea of a ‘coronavirus budget’ – in essence I know that you can not do everything but choose the things that are most important to you.
CNN: Even with a different variant, is your advice to follow the same protective measures that we already follow?
Win: That’s right. We must keep in mind that the pandemic is not over yet. There is absolute hope and hope is here, but we still need to be careful, especially because of this more contagious variant.
Keep up with mask, physical distance and avoid indoor gatherings. Aim to be vaccinated as soon as possible. Getting vaccinated is the key to preventing this virus from spreading anymore and that it can get many more people.