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In reply to the discussion: How to Reduce Your Chances of Dying From Covid by 99 percent! [View all]wnylib
(25,183 posts)a study of how long omicron remains active on surfaces in comparison with previous variants. Omicron lasts longer on surfaces than all the other variants.
The primary transmission of covid is through the air, by inhalation. But it is possible to get it from surface contact if the active virus gets on your hands and you touch your hands to your eyes, mouth, or nose.
Two examples of active omicron virus on surfaces were highlighted, skin and plastic. Omicron stays active for a full day, 23+ hours on human skin compared to 8 hours for delta. So hand washing is especially important to protect from omicron. According that article, previous variants became inactive on human skin after 15 seconds of exposure to alcohol based hand sanitizer.
Omicron staus active for 8.25 days on plastic surfaces, compared to 2 or 3 days for previous variants.
So, is it possible that the high infection rate of omicron is partially due to its long period of remaining active on surfaces?
If you bring a contaminated plastic item into your home, not knowing that it is contaminated, and wash your hands when you get home, you are still not protected from getting the virus. For the next 8 days in your own home, any time you touch that plastic item, you will have active virus on your hands. If you touch your mouth or eyes, you will introduce the virus into your body. It will probably be a low viral load, so your symptoms will be mild, especially if you are vaccinated. But why risk long covid, or transmitting It to others if you get it?
What about plastic containers or plastic wrap covering on takeout food? You take it back to work or your car and eat after washing your hands and then opening the container. Your clean hands get contaminated again when you touch the container to open it, then put your hands to your mouth.
If the employees who wrapped your take out, or handled it to give it to you at the register were not infected, nothing to worry about. But what if they were?
Might be good to start wiping down plastic items or plastic packaging with sanitizing wipes when we bring them home. Soda bottles, water bottles, packaging for snack foods, credit and debit cards, etc. Plastic elevator buttons that dozens of people have touched? Sanitize your hands after using them or don't touch your face until you wash your hands.
Or, if it's too much to be concerned about after 2 years of dealing with covid, then don't. But be sure you are vaccinated and boosted and be careful around vulnerable people.
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