Why is it said that the first one or two weeks are crucial for preventing coronavirus infection?
Starting March 3nd, schools will be closed, which is an unprecedented situation. I'm not a doctor, but I know a lot about air quality.
"Why two weeks from March 3?"
I have considered this question. First of all, viruses seem to be organisms that love dry air. Also, even if a virus enters the body, as long as the ciliated cells in the trachea are moist, the moisture will wash the virus into the stomach and it will die from stomach acid. If the ciliated cells are dry, it seems that the virus can easily enter the body directly.
For this reason, humidifiers are almost always installed in hospital waiting rooms. Some doctors seem to drink water frequently during examinations. Many of our customers are doctors, and we feel that many of them are particular about humidity.
Generally speaking, humidity refers to "relative humidity." Most hygrometers on the market are 100% relative humidity meters. However, the indicator that influences virus infection is absolute humidity rather than relative humidity. This is an indicator that indicates how many grams of water vapor are contained in 1 kg or 1 mXNUMX of air.
The only commercially available absolute hygrometers that can check this are the ones listed below.
The number on the top line indicates absolute humidity. If this exceeds around 8g/m4, it becomes much harder for viruses to infect. However, in winter, this value outside is less than 5g/m6, and even indoors, unless the air is properly humidified, it is usually only around XNUMX-XNUMXg/mXNUMX. (This does not include cases where a gas or kerosene fan heater is used.)
Two weeks after March 3nd, in the middle of March, the temperature will be considerably warmer and the amount of moisture in the air will also be considerably higher. Even if restrictions were lifted at this point, the chances of the infection spreading explosively like in previous periods are low. I think it was probably because of this thinking that the request for temporary closures was made.
For reference, I have created a table and graph showing the annual changes in absolute humidity in five cities: Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe, and Naha. You probably won't find this information anywhere else.
I think everyone is being thorough about wearing masks and gargling and washing their hands. In addition to that, I think it's also important to keep the air humidified at work and at home.
However, although it is unfortunate that the coronavirus outbreak occurred, I feel that it was a blessing in disguise that it occurred after February and during the warm winter of this year. If it had occurred in November during a cold winter, it could have been a real disaster.
