By: Khacor Tigner

It is no secret that the world is in full pandemic mode with many countries closing down non-essential activities. However, until recently Americans and people in our community thought that COVID-19 was nothing more than a mild flu. Thus with COVID-19 reaching its peak months as reported by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), what can you do to help flatten the curve?

Stay Inside!
Staying inside reduces the amount of people, if any, that you physically interact with. This act not only prevents you from catching the virus, but allows others to stay safe as well. This disease incubates slowly, so you can be infected, contagious, and not show symptoms for days.

Maintain a Healthy Social Distance.

Social distancing is something everyone has heard about at this point, and for good reason. According to the CDC staying about 6 feet (2 meters) away from others is the absolute minimum to limit the spread of COVID-19. The virus tends to spread through droplets that fall between people that are within 6 feet of each other. Social distancing is important even if you are with people that are asymptomatic, because in some cases people may never develop symptoms of COVID-19, yet are still able to spread it. People in this scenario are called carriers. Therefore it is wise to follow the CDC’s guidelines on social distancing in order to help you take preventative measures.

Wash Your Hands.

The act of washing your hands is not just a quick wipe down of your hands with soap and water. Instead you must scrub for at least 20 seconds with soap and water to wipe off the germs that are in place on your hands. Viruses have a fatty outer layer that are broken down with soap. It is necessary to wash your hands after touching anything that has come from the outside. When you are not able to wash your hands, the next best option is hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol as recommended by the CDC. Anything less will be ineffective at eliminating COVID-19.

These are the three main tips to stay healthy and keep the people around you healthy. Remember that this is a group effort, and we need total participation to keep our community safe.