Coronavirus weekly need-to-know: Hydrogen peroxide, allergies, flu season & more
Each week, we offer you a roundup of our noteworthy coronavirus coverage.
More than 43.6 million people in the United States have tested positive for the coronavirus as of Saturday, Oct. 2, according to Johns Hopkins University. That includes more than 700,500 people who have died nationwide.
Globally, there have been more than 234.4 million confirmed cases of the highly infectious virus, with more than 4.7 million reported deaths.
More than 184.6 million Americans are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as of Sept. 29 — about 56% of the total population, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tracker shows. About 67% of adults and 65% of people aged 12 and older are fully vaccinated in the U.S.
Here’s what happened between Sept. 24 and Sept. 30.
Pfizer submits COVID-19 vaccine data for ages 5-11 to FDA. When could kids get the shot?
Pfizer-BioNTech have submitted data on their COVID-19 vaccine in children ages 5-11 to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for initial review, according to a news release. The companies first revealed their data on the age group last week, announcing their vaccine appears to be safe and effective in children between 5 and 11 years old with a dose that’s a third of the amount given to teens and adults. The Pfizer vaccine is currently available in the U.S. for anyone ages 12 and up.
Next, the companies plan on sending the FDA a “formal submission to request emergency use authorization” in the coming weeks. The FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will then meet to review the vaccine’s safety and efficacy in kids ages 5-11 before officially recommending and authorizing the shot for use.
Some experts previously said kids ages 5-11 might be able to get vaccinated by Halloween, but they may have to wait longer than that.
Can you get COVID-19 and flu at the same time?
With summer in the rearview mirror, health officials are urging people to get vaccinated against the flu. But is there a chance you could contract an influenza virus along with the coronavirus — and what are the risks if you do?
Although both COVID-19 and the flu were spreading last year, influenza activity was “unusually low” compared to previous seasons. Experts say coronavirus preventive measures such as mask wearing, school closures, reduced travel and physical distancing likely reduced flu spread.
But you can get COVID-19 and the flu at the same time. Here’s what that could look like.
Are you considered fully vaccinated if you don’t get COVID-19 booster shot?
Some businesses are requiring employees and visitors to show proof of complete vaccination against COVID-19, but now that booster shots are in the mix, what does it mean to be fully vaccinated?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed in an update to its website that everyone is still considered fully vaccinated two weeks after their second shot for two-dose vaccines, including those from Pfizer and Moderna. People are also fully vaccinated two weeks after receipt of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
That means you do not have to receive a Pfizer booster shot to be considered fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
Continue reading to learn more.
Inhaling hydrogen peroxide does not treat COVID-19 and it’s dangerous
Those brown bottles of hydrogen peroxide may have been a hallmark of childhood injuries, as the colorless liquid fizzed up when it met a fresh scrape or cut.
But now, people are throwing the funky smelling antiseptic in a nebulizer — a machine that transforms it into a mist and is used by people with asthma — and inhaling it under the flawed belief that it will prevent or treat COVID-19. It’s yet another ill-suited endeavor by some people to avoid getting coronavirus vaccines, which are proven to prevent severe illness, hospitalization and death.
The method, which has been gaining popularity on social media, has doctors squirming. The apparent coronavirus treatment has not been properly studied in controlled clinical trials, and the handful of studies that do exist were based on small sample sizes or assumptions and failed to conclude that the inhalation of hydrogen peroxide was the reason behind some COVID-19 patients’ recovery.
Here’s everything you need to know about the health consequences of inhaling hydrogen peroxide.
Are allergies or COVID-19 causing your symptoms? How to tell the difference
Here comes another year of worrying about whether your cough or sneeze is really the coronavirus or seasonal allergies. Unlike COVID-19, a virus does not cause seasonal allergies, but rather a diverse array of plants, grasses or pollen — all of which have their own unique window of opportunity to lodge into people’s airways.
COVID-19, on the other hand, can infect people whenever and wherever, although some preventive measures such as vaccination and mask wearing can offer some protection. It also doesn’t help that more than two-thirds of spring allergy sufferers have yearround symptoms, according to The American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology.
Though worrisome when the first symptoms of the season come around, experts say the best way to confirm if you have COVID-19 or just allergies is to get tested. Here’s how to tell the difference.
Poll: What’s motivating people in the US to get COVID-19 vaccines now?
The No. 1 reason people in the U.S. are getting a COVID-19 vaccine may surprise you.
The rise of the delta variant, along with hospitalizations and deaths, “was the biggest motivating factor” for getting vaccinated, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. The poll of 1,519 adults was conducted Sept. 13-22.
Since June 1, 39% of adults said the surge in delta variant cases was the reason they got vaccinated, 38% attributed the uptick in hospitalizations, and 36% said “knowing someone who got seriously ill or died from the disease” motivated them to get the shot.
Drugs used by some people with Type 2 diabetes may reduce their risks of severe COVID-19
People with Type 2 diabetes may already be taking medications that reduce their risks of severe COVID-19, including hospitalization, respiratory complications and death, according to a new study.
Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists are known to reduce inflammation in the body, a problem that people with Type 2 diabetes often struggle with. COVID-19 is also known to trigger extreme inflammatory responses in severe cases, so researchers from Penn State College of Medicine speculated these medications could offer some protection against serious COVID-19.
People with Type 2 diabetes who were taking GLP-1R agonists within six months before getting infected with the coronavirus were “significantly less likely” to be hospitalized, suffer from respiratory complications and die from COVID-19 a month after testing positive compared to people of similar age, sex, race, ethnicity, body mass index and other medical conditions not taking the drugs, according to the study.
Poll: Americans’ trust in Biden to provide accurate information on COVID-19 drops
Americans are losing trust in President Joe Biden when it comes to information on COVID-19, a new poll found.
The Axios/Ipsos poll found fewer than half of Americans now trust Biden to provide accurate information about COVID-19, a significant decline from when he first took office. Americans have also lost at least some trust in several other groups — including the CDC, health officials, the government and the media — to provide accurate information on the pandemic, which has left over 697,000 Americans dead as of Oct. 1.
This story was originally published October 1, 2021 at 7:04 AM.
