COVID RISK: IS IT SAFE FOR ME TO RESUME ALL MY NORMAL ACTIVITIES?

In a restriction-free world, how risky is going to the pub vs going to the supermarket?

- PROF TRISH GREENHALGH

WILL VACCINES CONTINUE TO PROVIDE PROTECTION?

The latest strain (Omicron) is said to cause 'mild' COVID, but a big reason for this is that vaccines - in those who received a course and mounted a normal immune response – have blunted its deadly impact.

Omicron is probably more deadly than the original wild-type variant, but the population is now better protected Importantly, being vaccinated doesn't stop you catching and spreading COVID; it just reduces the severity of illness in most people. As we've let our guard down, case rates have skyrocketed. A disease with a low mortality rate affecting several million people will kill more people than a disease with a higher mortality rate that only affects a few thousand.

People with compromised immune systems (for example, anyone with a transplant, on chemotherapy, or taking steroids), and those who remain unvaccinated for any reason, are still at risk of severe disease and a possible fatal outcome. Hence, while vaccination is important, it's only our first line of defence.

HOW DO DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENTS AFFECT THE SPREAD OF COVID?

Step two in living with COVID is to attend to air quality, since the virus spreads mostly in tiny invisible particles suspended in the air.