Getty A man washes his hands at Princess Margaret Hospital in Hong Kong.
With the outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus in the United States, many individuals are wanting to know what measures to take to help protect themselves from getting infected.
Heavy spoke with Dr. Barry Boyd, an oncologist, hematologist, and nutritionist at Yale Medicine and a physician at Smilow Cancer Hospital Care Center. He shared his advice for the best practices that Americans can follow to protect themselves and reduce their chances of contracting COVID-19.
Heavy reiterates that individuals should always consult the CDC for the latest guidance on coronavirus prevention, as well as their local physician or health care professional.
Dr. Boyd Highlighted That Hand Washing Is Critical for COVID-19 Prevention
“The best thing is persistent hand washing,” Dr. Boyd said. He also reminded Americans to not touch their face.
As the virus may live on surfaces for a significant period of time, he advised individuals to use efficient cleaning products or bleach to clean these surfaces. Dr. Boyd said, “For 24 to 48 hours, those objects may still have a persistent virus on them.”
Dr. Boyd said that, while it’s important to avoid getting paranoid, it’s a good idea to treat surfaces as though they have the virus on them.
Dr. Boyd told Heavy, “I was talking to people in a hospital and I said that every time you go down the stairs and you’re holding the handrail, there are 10 people before you that did that — and one of them might have been infected.”
He also said, “People who are young and healthy [can] transmit it to people who aren’t.” It’s important for individuals to keep their distance because the virus can be transmitted, as per the CDC, “through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes.”
The CDC recommends that people keep around six feet of distance between each other.
Dr. Boyd Recommended Different Ways to Boost the Immune System
Dr. Boyd also gave his recommendations for different ways of boosting an individual’s immune system to better protect themselves from contracting the virus.
As per Harvard Medical School, “There is still much that researchers don’t know about the intricacies and interconnectedness of the immune response. For now, there are no scientifically proven direct links between lifestyle and enhanced immune function.”
Dr. Boyd said that maintaining a healthy diet, avoiding high amounts of sugar and doing lots of physical exercise are all key to keeping your body optimal. Vitamins can help as well, including a multivitamin, vitamin D3 and vitamin C.
To read more about what vitamins to take daily and how many, as well as more from Heavy’s interview with Dr. Boyd about boosting an individual’s immune system, click here.