Last year, all of our Christmas plans were suddenly cancelled due to an urgent COVID-related lockdown just before the Christmas holiday. This year, we are facing a highly transmissible variant, Omicron, and Plan B has already been implemented.
It is difficult to sufficiently emphasise just how transmissible Omicron is – it is believed that in an unventilated indoor space of 100 people if one person is positive for COVID-19, this could result in 50 people being infected. So in short, if someone has the Omicron variant, they are passing it on.
The good news is that it seems milder, with reports out of South Africa suggesting the Omicron variant is around 30% milder than the Delta variant, and with the booster programme underway, we should all be able to have a COVID-safe Christmas, as long as we take some important additional measures.
Get tested!
Although regular lateral flow tests are helpful for reducing transmission in the wider population, if you really want to keep your older or more vulnerable friends and relatives safe, you should ideally have a PCR test.
PCR tests can detect COVID-19 early on in the infection stages, whereas lateral flow usually needs you to be at your most infectious to test positive.
Not mistaking vaccination with a force field!
Vaccines are intended to prevent hospitalisation and serious illness. They are not a force field. So being vaccinated, whilst reducing the chance of transmission, does not eliminate it. The rise in COVID cases has clearly shown this to be the case.
Have your booster!
All vaccine efficacy wanes over time. Having your booster will help protect you and your family from COVID-19.
Keep rooms ventilated!
All of the research has shown that ventilation plays a significant role in clearing the air of COVID-19. Beyond just preventing transmission, your goal should be to prevent a high viral load, which makes people much sicker.
Clearing the air regularly, despite a bit of cold, is the best way to do this.
Know the symptoms!
It can be difficult to differentiate between symptoms but our advice is this – if you feel unwell in any way, have a PCR test and stay away until you have the result. The reason for this is that COVID-19 can present as a wide range of symptom clusters and with most of us now vaccinated, may present as very mild.
Symptoms can be as varied as:
- Headache
- Runny nose
- Coughing
- Sneezing
- Sore throat
- Gastric symptoms such as nausea or diarrhoea
- Loss of taste and/or smell
- Fever
- Acute sudden fatigue / low energy
- Acute sudden back pain/joint pain
We hope this advice is helpful and we wish you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
