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Coronavirus: How dangerous a threat?

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The Czech prime minister Andrej Babis said on Thursday people’s movement needed to be “radically” limited over at least the next three weeks as his government prepared more restrictions to slow one of the world’s fastest spreads of Covid-19 infections.
Babis’s minority government has sought to shore up support from opposition parties to win an extension of state-of-emergency powers – needed to curb mobility – in a parliamentary vote on Friday.
If parliament rejected the extension of emergency powers into March, which it did in a previous vote, Babis said other solutions would need to be found.
Babis has come under fire for his handling of the pandemic from the opposition.
Lawmakers rejected extending a state of emergency two weeks ago when the Communist party, which props up Babis’s government, withdrew support after demands to reopen schools went unmet.
The government sidestepped lawmakers by calling a new state of emergency at regional governments’ request but still needs lawmakers’ approval to extend it beyond February.
The Communist party has not signalled how it would vote this time. Babis may gain support given the worsening situation.
On Wednesday, Babis said “hellish days” were ahead and hospitals faced “catastrophe” without action.
Over the past week, the country has had the highest per capita infection rate in the world and second highest death rate, according to the Our World in Data website. Its infection rate in the last two weeks is nine times higher than Germany.
 
I'll reply to both of your post here:
RE aerobic exercise and masks: In the spring I did a two hour mountain bike ride wearing a two layer cotton mask just to see what it would be like. The best comparison is that it was like riding above 10,000 feet. So I would disagree with you that you can't do aerobic exercise properly with a mask on because it was actually an even better aerobic workout with one (perceived and physiologically). I'm OK with closing gyms though (I haven't been to the Y since mid March 2020).

Well apart from the fact altitude training can't be simulated by restricting air flow, I've never ridden at 10,000 feet so I'll have to take your word for it :). But I doubt the average person will want to do intense exercise wearing a mask. Frankly I think its overkill. We also covered this subject some months back when Europe had lockdowns and you guys couldn't even ride. In Australia I could still go for long rides even when we had lockdowns where I live. No gyms though.
 
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Well apart from the fact altitude training can't be simulated by restricting air flow, I've never ridden at 10,000 feet so I'll have to take your word for it :). But I doubt the average person will want to to intense exercise wearing a mask. Frankly I think its overkill. We also covered this subject some months back when Europe had lockdowns and you guys couldn't even ride. In Australia I could still go for long rides even when we had lockdowns where I live. No gyms though.
I've only ridden at that altitude a few times and its been years ago (loop started at 8,000 feet, climb to 10, 500). I wasn't saying that it was simulating altitude training, I was just saying that it had the same sensation of less oxygen (lungs, legs...). Altitude training is simulated by reducing available oxygen, but we can save that discussion for the training thread I guess.

I was able to ride everyday March through August and it is what kept me sane, or maybe from going more crazy.
 
I'll reply to both of your post here:
RE aerobic exercise and masks: In the spring I did a two hour mountain bike ride wearing a two layer cotton mask just to see what it would be like. The best comparison is that it was like riding above 10,000 feet. So I would disagree with you that you can't do aerobic exercise properly with a mask on because it was actually an even better aerobic workout with one (perceived and physiologically). I'm OK with closing gyms though (I haven't been to the Y since mid March 2020).
I've done several VO2max HIIT workouts on the spin bike which was a little difficult in cardiorespiratory function. It was hard to maintain the target effort, was sweating profusely inside the mask and experienced some dizziness afterwards. Low-intensity efforts on the bike as well as my regular weight workouts are fine with the mask. So, for me it seems to be related primarily to the intensity level of the cardio workout.

At higher intensities there probably will be reduced 02 availability and impaired CO2 exchange, plus an increased risk of cardiac overload & an acidic environment:


In addition, the W.H.O. is still discouraging people from wearing masks when excercising because it reduces the availability to breathe comfortably and sweat developing within the mask promotes the growth of microorganisms.

On the gyms: I've been going regularly since they reopened last summer (Denver) and the mask compliance has been excellent. No waivers whatsoever for this gym and people with asthma or breathing disorders are permitted to wear a face shield instead (provided by the gym free of charge). Initially, I didn't like the idea of wearing a mask at the gym, but to my surprise I've gotten completely used to it. It's part of my standard equipment now along with gloves, fluids, towel, etc. And it's kinda cute how some of the ladies match the color of their masks with their workout attire or hair color. Lol.

They can have a mask mandate forever if they want.
 
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Is there some kind of alternate reality here about gyms,pre pandemic,gyms were smelly, stories world wide about a person getting up from a machine or designated work out area and leaving behind body fluids and smells, that were a crime scene. In lots of cities,gyms offer speed work outs because lots on lines build up at peak times,so there was already a long standing anger over social distancing. Zumba..Soul Cycle other spin classes,the air you are breathing is partially fluid from other participants.
And cleaning or just simple wipe down of machines or weights..let's be real.
And the homeless,unintentional and the intentional,aka full time RV life have an extensive internet presence on how to use a gym as primarily a bathroom. With $10 dollars a month Planet fitness getting you a shower for a fraction of a truck stop..
So before Covid gyms were filthy..and athletes foot or other undesirable fungus getting on your parts was a well founded fear..
they test us for Covid using Q-tips but I think if those same Qtips were rubbed on publicly used Peloton bikes!!! Yikes
I think Pfizer needs a seat smear soon
 
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And the homeless,unintentional and the intentional,aka full time RV life have an extensive internet presence on how to use a gym as primarily a bathroom.
That's true - over the years I've seen the homeless & drifters pop in the gym from time to time to shower & shave and wash their clothes in the sink (they'll use the hand dryers to dry their clothes. Lol). Don't know if they have memberships or not or how they got in (maybe a free pass). However, they're in & out pretty quick and try to be low key not drawing attention to themselves.

At the gym I'm at now (several years) we have a regular homeless guy that's been there for years. He's middle-age and another member purchased a membership for him. He works out literally for 2+ hrs a day combining cardio & strength training. Then he's there for another hour or so to shave, shower, haircut, clip nails, etc, as well as do his laundry. The guy eats nothing but junk food hitting all the fast food joints & grocery stores in the area for free food or throw outs. For 62, the guy looks really good actually and is in better shape than most guys half his age at the gym. I asked him recently if got Covid and he said he wouldn't know because he was never sick enough to get tested (he said he had a slight cold last spring and that's about it). He must have an immune system like steel. Lol.

I think an oversight you have with gyms is their importance in stress relief, particularly during this pandemic:

"The Stress - and Stress Relief - of the Gyms During Coronavirus."


"Tony Maloney, the fitness center manager at National Institute for Fitness and Sport in Indianapolis, points out that people should be exercising now more than ever. “When endorphin levels go up, it can counteract the stress response that is so damaging to the immune system,” he says. “Exercise also improves mental health. When you’re feeling down or stressed, exercise can put a smile on your face.”
 
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I think that all of us already understand this, but this is a nice simple way to show friends, relatives, colleagues who ask (similar to something dj shared a while back):

EvP5dQIVgAIYjxo
 
Politics and vaccines - quite interesting. The AstraZeneca-UK (and Brexit) connection, Pfizer and Moderna being hoarded in the US through special measures, and now J&J that filed for approval in the US 2 weeks before it did so in the EU, and thus being approved also 2 weeks earlier in the US, thus also delivering there earlier.
 
Politics and vaccines - quite interesting. The AstraZeneca-UK (and Brexit) connection, Pfizer and Moderna being hoarded in the US through special measures, and now J&J that filed for approval in the US 2 weeks before it did so in the EU, and thus being approved also 2 weeks earlier in the US, thus also delivering there earlier.

It's possible that if the EU requires more data than the FDA requires (which is sounded like when Pfizer applied) it may have just taken longer for J&J get to all the extra info together. If I remember correctly Pfizer had sent their application to both EU and US at about the same time and it was a couple weeks later the EU gave their EUA than what the FDA did. So I wouldn't read anything into when J&J applied. Canada approved Pfizer before the US and EU and Pfizer applied there after it applied to the EU and US (FDA).
 
J&J will get EU approval on March 11, normally, but the EU will get first doses only in April. There is huge political pressure behind the scenes, I have no doubt of this. Of course, the real victims are not all these rich countries, which have ordered up to 4x as many vaccines as they need. Still, many in the EU feel short-changed, having financed research & production capacity, but still coming behind the US and the UK in deliveries. BioNTech is German, Janssen (who developed the J&J vaccine) is Belgian.
 
J&J shipped 4 million to the US as soon as approval happened. They promise to ship 16m more by the end of the month. The lag in EU approval shouldn't be that big a deal in terms of priority if the distribution was equitable. Is there a timeline on Novavax approval in the EU? I mentioned earlier in the thread that this would seem to be the ideal immediate solution for the EU because the US will not approve it before May- June, ignoring the smaller clinical trials that have shown good efficacy. They claim to be able to make 150m doses a month by May, so that would help a lot. I don't have any notion of what is going on behind the scenes, but the allocation of the vaccines seems less fair than even I anticipated. And that is only heightened by the poor bet made by AZ about their vaccine target, making their vaccine much less desirable. Though I would still take it if offered this minute.
 
Is there a timeline on Novavax approval in the EU? I mentioned earlier in the thread that this would seem to be the ideal immediate solution for the EU because the US will not approve it before May- June, ignoring the smaller clinical trials that have shown good efficacy. They claim to be able to make 150m doses a month by May, so that would help a lot.

April, apparently, according to this Spanish article


CureVac would be even more important, though, as they more or less produce EU exclusive, and are supposed to have 300 million doses available relatively quickly
 
Slovakia bought 2 milions vaccines Sputnik V. They should be delivered to june. First 200 000 vaccines came today and Slovakia want to start in two weeks. I am not interested in non registered vaccine and I dont like it at all. To vaccinate people based on one article in Lancet :mad: SUKL (slovak autority) stated that they have no capacity to approve vaccines. I am also surprised Russia want to send us vaccines for almost 1/5 citizens when they vaccinated so small number of people. Hungary bought russian vaccines a long time ago and if I am not mistaken they got smaller number of vaccines we got today.
 
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Is there some kind of alternate reality here about gyms,pre pandemic,gyms were smelly, stories world wide about a person getting up from a machine or designated work out area and leaving behind body fluids and smells, that were a crime scene. In lots of cities,gyms offer speed work outs because lots on lines build up at peak times,so there was already a long standing anger over social distancing. Zumba..Soul Cycle other spin classes,the air you are breathing is partially fluid from other participants.
And cleaning or just simple wipe down of machines or weights..let's be real.
And the homeless,unintentional and the intentional,aka full time RV life have an extensive internet presence on how to use a gym as primarily a bathroom. With $10 dollars a month Planet fitness getting you a shower for a fraction of a truck stop..
So before Covid gyms were filthy..and athletes foot or other undesirable fungus getting on your parts was a well founded fear..
they test us for Covid using Q-tips but I think if those same Qtips were rubbed on publicly used Peloton bikes!!! Yikes
I think Pfizer needs a seat smear soon
I quit going to gyms after getting a skin fungus from one of the most "exclusive" operations in our neighborhood. They had alot of great equipment but had employees incentivized to do private consults. No one cleaned equipment because the staff was too busy selling 'roid patches and posing. The spin studio was supposed to have great ventilation and it may have been but, as you've pointed out the humidity level would suggest you're breathing everyone's exhaust.
 
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Interesting thing pointed out on CNBC this afternoon. J&J has 4 manufacturing sites in the US, they have 4 manufacturing sites in Europe, 1 in India, and 1 in South Africa. The 4 in Europe are in 4 different countries. The the map is appears the ones in Europe are in Spain, France, Italy, and Belgium (although I could easily be wrong on that one).
Also J&J said it takes basically 2 months to manufacture the vaccine and about 20 days for quality control before shipping of the vaccine.

Hoping Novavax will continue to show the same numbers they released around the same time J&J released their information.
 
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New infections rose last week for first time in seven weeks

More from the World Health Organization:
The WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said new case numbers rose last week in Europe, the Americas, southeast Asia and the eastern Mediterranean.
The number of new coronavirus infections globally rose last week for the first time in seven weeks.
“This is disappointing, but not surprising,” Tedros said. “Some of it appears to be due to relaxing of public health measures, continued circulation of variants, and people letting down their guard.”
He added: “Vaccines will help to save lives, but if countries rely solely on vaccines, they’re making a mistake. Basic public health measures remain the foundation of the response.”
Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s Covid-19 technical lead, said: “If the last week tells us anything, it’s that this virus will rebound if we let it - and we cannot let it.”
Tedros wants Covid-19 vaccination under way in every country within the first 100 days of 2021 - meaning there are 40 days left to go.
 
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