Dr. Fauci Says You'll Catch COVID From This Kind of Person
Over the last year, health experts have been studying every aspect of COVID-19, including how it is spread. As a result of their research, we have a better understanding of the people, places, and things that are more likely to spread the potentially deadly virus than others. During an interview with the Association of Performing Arts Professionals, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert and the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, took a deep dive into how the pandemic has impacted the theater community. He also revealed the type of person who is mainly responsible for propagating the spread of the virus. Read on—and to ensure your health and the health of others, don't miss these Sure Signs You've Already Had Coronavirus.
Asymptomatic Spreaders Are Responsible
Dr. Fauci explained that the majority of spread is occurring by people who have no idea they are even infected. "So we know that somewhere around 40% of all the people who are infected have no symptoms at all. And we know that about half of the transmissions occur from a person who is either presymptomatic, namely doesn't have any symptoms, but will soon develop symptoms. But you don't know when you interact with them because they don't have symptoms then. And about 20 some odd percent is from people who will never, ever get symptoms," he revealed. "So a little bit more than 50% of all the transmissions occur from someone who has no symptoms."
That is "very, very problematic," he points out, "because if you don't know, who's infected, you have so many people walking around in society who are infected, who feel perfectly well, who are inadvertently and innocently, infecting other people."
"Now, the fact that they don't have any symptoms is fine for them, but as they infect other people sooner or later, they're going to infect someone who is either elderly or who has an underlying condition that makes them more susceptible to the severe outcome of infection," he continued.
RELATED: 7 Tips You Must Follow to Avoid COVID, Say Doctors
Young People Are "Propagating" the Outbreak
He also revealed that many of these unintentional spreaders are "young people, who might maybe understandably, but certainly incorrectly think that if they get infected, since the chances are that they will have no symptoms, what difference does it make? They're going to get infected and they're going to get better, even though they don't have any symptoms."
However, it does make a difference in that they are "propagating the outbreak," he points out. "And it is likely since you don't know that you're infected, that you will infect someone else who will then infect someone else who will then infect someone who does have a serious outcome. So you may not realize it, but you may be responsible, two or three generations of infections down the pike, that you are actually responsible for somebody getting seriously ill and maybe even dying."
RELATED: If You Feel This, You May Have Already Had COVID, Says Dr. Fauci
How to Survive This Pandemic
As for yourself, follow Fauci's fundamentals and help end this surge, no matter where you live—wear a face mask, social distance, avoid large crowds, don't go indoors with people you're not sheltering with (especially in bars), practice good hand hygiene, get vaccinated when it becomes available to you, and to protect your life and the lives of others, don't visit any of these 35 Places You're Most Likely to Catch COVID.
