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Molly Brown

Scott Johnson

English Composition 2

1 November 2020

How to Best Protect Yourself from the Coronavirus

What if someone told you in 2019 that your whole 2020 year would spend quarantined

inside and all your big plans would be canceled. You probably would have thought they were

crazy. But here we are... 2020 has been a struggle for everyone from not being able to see your

family, to wedding and vacations being canceled. But for life to return to normal you need to

stop the spread of the virus and keep our loved ones safe. To do that you need to take some

necessary steps. To keep yourself and others safe from the coronavirus and stop the spread

people need to wear a mask, wash your hands as often as possible, and social distance when in

public. Following these rules and others will help keep people safe and help get your life back to

normal as soon as possible.

The coronavirus has caused a global pandemic, and the whole world to go on complete

lockdown. Why? This deadly virus is easily transmitted when an infected person comes into

contact with other people. Most people do show symptoms such as cough, sore throat, fever, and

more. But some people can be asymptomatic meaning they don’t show any symptoms and do not

know they’re spreading the virus. This virus is very dangerous to older people and people with

other health concerns and is very deadly. It is so important to protect yourself as much as you

can from the virus so you can stay safe and keep those around you safe as well.

There's been a lot of controversy over mask during the pandemic, people wondering if

they do anything. Masks are very important right now, almost everywhere requires them to enter

and you can’t really go anywhere in public without one. According to Nina Bai from the
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University of California San Francisco “A recent study published in Health Affairs, compared

the COVID-19 growth rate before and after mask mandates in 15 states and the District of

Columbia. It found that mask mandates led to a slowdown in daily COVID-19 growth rate,

which became more apparent over time” (Bai 2020). This proves that the mask does help and

does make a big difference. The more people that wear a mask the sooner the pandemic will be

over, and we can go back to our normal lives.

Mask, everyone hates then but everyone needs them. No matter what kind of mask you

have whether it’s a homemade cloth, N-95, or a surgical mask, they all help make a difference.

Keeping your droplets to yourself and not spreading them will keep others around you safe from

the virus. According to Cynthia Demarco from the University of Texas, “Studies show that cloth

and medical-grade face masks can cut down on coronavirus droplet spread by 80% or more”

(Demarco 2020). Eighty percent is huge when thinking of what it would be like if no one more

mask. If everyone would wear their mask it would make a huge impact on the spread of the

virus. One piece of cloth could save thousands of lives.

If you must wear a mask for hours and hours each day, you want to wear the most

protective one, right? So, which mask can protect you the best and keep you safe? According to

the Public Library of Science, a laboratory study tested 17 different homemade cloth masks in

four different tests. They tested pressure difference, particle filtration efficiency, bacterial

filtration efficiency, and resistance to surface wetting. They found that the homemade masked

failed to meet the standards of the surgical mask, but if they double layered the mask it would

meet the standards. So, if you don’t have any surgical mask since they are mainly saved for

health care workers. Then double layering your homemade mask will give you the same

protection that the surgical mask gives. So, you can go out and feel safe that your masks are

keeping your particles to yourself and keeping other people's particles out.
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If you don’t like the facemask or work somewhere where you are constantly talking to

people and they can't hear you with a mask on, there are other options. Face shields are also a

great way to keep you and your peers safe. St. Luke’s Health shows a great graph showing all the

benefits of wear a face shield and the big differences from wearing a mask. It states that shields

can also protect your eyes and just not your mouth and nose. They keep people from touching

their faces when out in public. And it is better for people with sensory processing issues. So, if

wearing a face shield instead of a facemask sounds better to you then that is also a great choice

you have to stay safe from the virus.

Germs are on everything, door handles, credit card readers, gas pumps, and more. It is so

important to wash your hands regularly so you can keep your hands clean. When you get germs

on your hands and then touch your face or food, you are letting those germs easily enter your

body. When you’re in public and can’t wash your hands then hand sanitizer is also an effective

way to get rid of germs. Although it's not as good as a good 20-second-long hand wash, it’ll do

the job until you can get to a sink. According to the Center for Disease Control, “Washing your

hands is easy, and it's one of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of germs. Clean hands

can stop germs from spreading from one person to another and throughout an entire

community—from your home and workplace to childcare facilities and hospitals” (CDC). One

quick wash could prevent getting the virus and having to miss two weeks of work and getting

very sick. Making sure your hands are always clean after touching commonly used surfaces is a

huge way to always make sure you’re doing your part of containing the virus and stopping the

spread.

Everyone knows how to wash their hands right? Well maybe not, washing your hands

makes a huge impact on not spreading the virus and keeping people safe if it’s done right.

According to the CDC, you must wash use soap containing at least 60% alcohol and then scrub
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your hands for at least 20 seconds before drying them with a clean single-use towel or air drying

(CDC 2020). If following these simple steps your hands will be cleaned properly and will have

gotten rid of any unwanted germs. If everyone does this the transfer of germs will be cut down

and keep the positive cases numbers down as well. When touching any surfaces that other people

have touched wash your hands properly to get rid of all gross germs, so you do not transfer them

into your body or on other surfaces.

To understand the virus, you have you know how it spreads. The FDA says, “The virus

that causes COVID-19 spreads mainly from person to person, typically through respiratory

droplets from coughing, sneezing, or talking” (FDA). This is why it is so important to wash your

hands so often. When people are sick, they are constantly coughing into their hands or wiping

their nose, and if they need to stay at home for 14 days they are going to need to get food before

doing so. If they go into public, they could spread these germs all throughout and you'd never

know you picked up their germs. Using hand sanitizer or washing your hands after you touch

anything in public can keep all the germs off your hands and help not spread them onto your

face. So, when going out into public you always need to wash your hands when you have

touched something that someone else might have touched so you don’t pick up the virus and

spread it everywhere you are going to touch in the future.

No more hugs, parties, or family gathering has been one of the biggest struggles during

covid. Having to always stay socially distanced and a safe six feet apart from everyone has been

a constant struggle, but it’s one of the most important rules to follow. The Center for Disease

Control has said “COVID-19 spreads mainly among people who are in close contact (within

about 6 feet) for a prolonged period. Spread happens when an infected person coughs, sneezes,

or talks, and droplets from their mouth or nose are launched into the air and land in the mouths or

noses of people nearby. The droplets can also be inhaled into the lungs” (CDC). Staying six feet
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part can help stop the spread and keep everyone safe. Having that six feet between everyone can

eliminate the spread by droplets and lower the numbers. It is also extremely important for people

in the high-risk category to make sure they are social distancing and don’t catch the virus.

Although social distancing is the hardest of the rules to follow it’s the one, they will keep you

safe and stop the spread.

Another big part of social distancing is staying home and not going out. If feeling under

the weather or exposed to someone with the virus it’s so important to stay home in case, you

contracted the virus and not spreading it. According to the CDC, “COVID-19 can live for hours

or days on a surface, depending on factors such as sunlight, humidity, and the type of surface. It

may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the

virus on it and then touching their mouth, nose, or eyes. However, this is not thought to be the

main way the virus spreads. Social distancing helps limit opportunities to come in contact with

contaminated surfaces and infected people outside the home” (CDC 2020). Social distancing is

the main source of the spread, not going to parties and big gathering helps not spread the virus

and keeps communities safe. If everyone follows the rules, we won’t have to make the tough

decision on whether we should or shouldn’t go to outings. Although it’s hard to stay away from

your loved ones, the further you stay away the sooner you'll be able to be with them again

without all the rules and regulations.

What do you do when you need to travel on a plane? It’s hard to social distance on a

plane and keep everyone apart. Well according to a new study, planes might be one of the safest

places. The NPR states “In other words, because of a plane's filtration systems, your risk of

catching the coronavirus on a flight comes almost entirely from the people sitting around you.

And that risk is lower when those fellow passengers wear masks” (NPR). Flights requiring

everyone to wear a mask the whole time during the trip which keeps people in close contact safe.
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And the plane's filtration system filters all the air in the plane and filters and corona particles in

the air. With these two precautions, flying is considered safe. They also tested people during this

study before and safe the flight and found “Emirates had five flights with seven or more infected

passengers on each flight, for a total of 58 coronavirus-positive passengers flying on eight-hour

trips. And yet, nobody else on the planes — none of the other 1,500 to 2,000 passengers —

picked up the virus, Freedman and his colleague report in the Journal of Travel Medicine”

(NPR). This study proves that if everyone follows the rules it is possible to not social distance

and keep everyone safe on planes. This is a huge find because some people must travel for work

or family matters and being able to feel safe while doing helps so much.

Another particularly important way to stop the spread of covid and protect workers is to

install plexiglass and divider in places where social distancing is not possible. This helps put up a

barrier between tables at restaurants and between customers and workers. It can ensure that no

droplets from the other person and cross through and get on them. Because covid is so new and

we have never had to use plexiglass dividers before there's little research on it. Although

according to William Ristenpart, Ph.D., a professor of chemical engineering at the University of

California says “plexiglass shields work kind of the same way as to face shields. Face shields

will block the large droplets” (Ristenpart2020). Using this between table helps the separate

parties feel safe and comfortable to take off their mask and enjoy a nice meal. Also, having this

up at the retail store, groceries, and banks helps have that extra protection so the customers feel

safe coming in there be a lower risk of infection. This is a huge help for small businesses to be

able to open back up during this tough time and earn a living.

Although those are the main ways to protect yourself from covid there are many more

ways to stay safe. To help not contract the virus it’s best to not touch your face, eyes, and mouth.

This would transfer the germs from on your hands into your body and you would contract the
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virus. And if you must touch your face for an itch or another reason, you must wash your hands

or use hand sanitizer, so you aren’t transferring germs onto your face. Covering your coughs and

sneezes and not letting your droplets fly everywhere also helps contain the virus. Getting a flu

shot will help people not obtain the flu and not have to worry whether they have the flu or the

coronavirus. We don’t need two viruses going around getting everyone sick. We have a vaccine

for one of them so we should use it. Another way to protect yourself from the virus would be to

clean and disinfect frequently. Cleaning items that are touched frequently and cleaning items you

have taken out of your car or house and into the public. Stores need to clean door handles,

keypads, pens, and commonly touched things. Doing this will kill the virus that is on any

surfaces and help stop the spread of covid. When doing all these things together, you are helping

the world get rid of the coronavirus one step at a time.

A huge way to protect yourself and stay safe is to just live a healthy lifestyle. According

to Healthline, “Maintaining a balanced diet, getting enough sleep, engaging in regular physical

activity, and not smoking are some of the most important ways to help keep your immune system

healthy and reduce your chances of infection and disease” (Healthline). Your immune system is

what keeps you healthy and fights to keep the bad germs out of our bodies. Keeping your

immune system healthy and strong helps your body fight off any bad viruses. And if you do

catch the virus, having a strong immune system will help your chances of not getting sick and

ending up in the hospital from the virus. Staying in shape, eating healthy, and taking vitamins

helps your immune system stay strong and fight off any unwanted viruses.

Another thing that many people do to protect from the coronavirus is wearing gloves

when going into public. But does this help? According to Penn State Huck Institute for the Life

Science, “Gloves themselves do not kill the virus. If you’re wearing gloves and you touch

something that has a virus on it, it can transfer to your gloves. If you then touch your face, you’re
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just using your gloves to transfer the virus from a source to your face. You can make that

mistake with or without gloves on” (Penn State). So, yes, gloves do protect you from the virus if

you don’t touch your face and take them off as soon as you leave the store. But you can just not

use gloves and use hand sanitizer as soon as you leave, and it’ll do the same thing. So, if you feel

like gloves give you that extra layer of protection then wears them, but just do it correctly. But if

you don’t wear gloves and just use a hand sanitizer that okay too. So, in the end, gloves do not

make a big difference in protecting against the coronavirus.

Protecting people from the coronavirus is also about the little things. Places aren’t

accepting cash right now so that their employees don’t have to touch the customer's money.

Places have six feet maskers, so you know how far to distance. If you need to sign something

somewhere in public, places have two different jars one for the clean pens and the other for the

dirty, so germs don’t spread. Before going into places like hospitals and some stores you will

have to get your temperature taken to ensure you don’t have fever since that is one of the main

symptoms. Changing their business hours so they can ensure everything is clean. And people

working from home or going to online schooling. All these little things that businesses and stores

do help keep people stay safe and stop the spread of the coronavirus. It’s just not about making

sure that you are keeping yourself safe but also about keeping others safe and respecting them

and their decisions to stay home and follow the rules.

One of the biggest ways to protect yourself from the coronavirus would also have to be

your sense of judgment. Staying home when not feeling well or showing any signs of the virus so

you don’t spread it. If you were in contact with someone with the virus it is important to take the

test and stay quarantined for the recommended ten days. If you were invited to a birthday party

or get together, it is your responsibility to make the right decision about going. Following all the

rules when in public like wearing a mask properly, washing your hands, and social distancing so
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you’re always six feet away. You need to hold yourself accountable for your actions and take

this seriously so people you love don’t end up dying or really sick. We are all going through this

together and the only way we’re going to make it out is if we stick together and keep each other

safe.

Even though there are millions of cases and hundreds of thousands of deaths from covid-

19, you are always going to have people telling you it is not real and mask and social distancing

do not do anything. According to an article written by the Advisory Board “One of the people

Lopez spoke with—a 77-year-old man who was not wearing a mask—said people wearing

masks were "probably driven by political scare tactics," adding that he didn't know anyone who

had contracted the new coronavirus. The man said he believed that if case counts of the virus are

increasing, it's likely due to more diagnostic testing rather than a surge in the novel coronavirus'

spread” (Advisory Board 2020). Since 2020 is an election year, some people do this this is all put

on by the politicians and there is nothing to fear. That we have so many cases only because we

are testing so many people. When the reality is that yes, it is an election year, but people are

dying so no matter what you think this is very real and they need to protect themselves and the

ones they love. And yes, cases are going to go up if we keep the test, but we need to be testing

people to make sure they are quarantined if they do have the virus. Right now, is not the time for

the nation to divide. We need to stick together and fight the coronavirus together and beat it!

In conclusion, the coronavirus is a very real and scary thing. Hundreds of thousands of

people have died in the U.S. alone and it is on the rise. But there are ways that we can protect

ourselves and each other, wearing a mask, washing your hand regularly, and social distancing are

the major ways that will help keep people safe. And although people may not like having to

follow these rules, if they don’t, they just dragging it out longer and making it worst. We need to
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stick together and help each other stay safe and healthy until this is over and then we can all

celebrate together as one.

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WORK CITED:

Bai, Nina. “Still Confused About Masks? Here's the Science Behind How Face Masks Prevent

Coronavirus.” Still Confused About Masks? Here's the Science Behind How Face Masks

Prevent Coronavirus | UC San Francisco, 30 Oct. 2020,

www.ucsf.edu/news/2020/06/417906/still-confused-about-masks-heres-science-behind-

how-face-masks-prevent.

DeMarco, Cynthia. “What Type of Mask Works Best for COVID-19 Protection?” MD Anderson

Cancer Center, MD Anderson Cancer Center, 14 Aug. 2020,

www.mdanderson.org/cancerwise/what-type-of-mask-works-best-for-coronavirus-covid-

19-protection.h00-159384312.html.

Center for Disease Control. “When and How to Wash Your Hands.” Centers for Disease Control

and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 Sept. 2020,

www.cdc.gov/handwashing/when-how-handwashing.html.

Center for Disease Control. “Social Distancing, Quarantine, and Isolation.” Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,

www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/social-distancing.html.

Doheny, Kathleen. “Can Plexiglass Stop COVID?” WebMD, WebMD, 8 Sept. 2020,

www.webmd.com/lung/news/20200908/can-plexiglass-stop-covid.

Advisory Board. “Why Some Americans Won't Wear Face Masks, in Their Own Words.”

Advisory Board Daily Briefing, 2020, www.advisory.com/daily-briefing/2020/06/19/mask-

wearing.

Center For Infectious Disease Dynamic. “COVID-19 FAQ: AskCIDD - The Huck Institutes.”

Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics | The Huck Institutes, 2020,

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www.huck.psu.edu/institutes-and-centers/center-for-infectious-disease-dynamics/covid-19-

faq-askcidd.

Wang, Dijia. “Selection of Homemade Mask Materials for Preventing Transmission of COVID-

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gale-com.sinclair.ohionet.org/ps/retrieve.do?tabID=Journals.

Doucleff, Michaeleen. “Do Masks On Plane Flights Really Cut Your Risk Of Catching COVID-

19?” NPR, NPR, 20 Oct. 2020,

www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/10/20/925892185/do-masks-really-cut-your-

risk-of-catching-covid-19-on-long-plane-flights.

Healthline. “The 15 Best Supplements to Boost Your Immune ... - Healthline.” The 15 Best

Supplements to Boost Your Immune System Right Now, 2020,

www.healthline.com/nutrition/immune-boosting-supplements.

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www.stlukeshealth.org/resources/understanding-differences-between-face-masks-shields.

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2020, www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-and-response/coronavirus-disease-2019-

covid-19/covid-19-frequently-asked-questions.