Over 3,000 people dead. Almost 90,000 infected. The Wuhan CoronaVirus, also known as Covid-19,  has been causing chaos around the world since December of 2019 and continues to spread rapidly every day. 

The Covid-19 virus is caused by a member of the coronavirus family that has never been encountered before. Like other coronaviruses, it has come from animals and transmits from person to person. The virus can cause pneumonia, coughing, fevers, breathing difficulties, and in severe cases: organ failure. Though the disease originated in mainland China, it has spread to over 30 other countries. With severe outbreaks in South Korea, Italy, and Iran, every day we are growing closer to declaring the outbreak a pandemic. 

When asked about whether or not the Wuhan CoronaVirus is something that we should all be worried about, Sara Camren, High School Biology Teacher, stated that we shouldn’t be overly freaked out about the outbreak. 

“I think it is definitely something that needs to be kept on the radar, but I don’t think that it is something that we need to freak out about,” Camren said. “Should we be taking our normal precautions as if it were flu season, washing our hands, and sneezing into our elbow? Yes. Do we need to do anything extra and crazy? No.”

Camren said that we really don’t need to be too overly cautious living in the U.S at this time. She stated that we should also try to avoid travel to places that are very affected by the virus.

 “So, because the CoronaVirus is such a big issue in  Wuhan and a few other countries, I definitely think that we need to not travel to or visit those countries, ” Camren said.  “But for those people living in the United States, I don’t think we need to do anything out of the ordinary aside from just washing our hands and keeping clean like it’s flu season.”  

She also said that personal hygiene is very important in regards to preventing the spread of disease and very much believes that washing your hands is a huge factor in doing so.

“So one of the big things is any time that you are done using the bathroom, wash your hands with soap and water,” Camren said. “Because that’s going to kill any of that bacteria that might be on your hands. Every time you go to prepare or eat any food, wash your hands before and after to make sure we aren’t transferring any pathogens.”

Camren said social media can be both beneficial and not beneficial at the same time. 

“Social media is really huge,” she stated. “The bad thing about it is people can blow everything out of proportion. It can cause unnecessary panic and chaos. But at the same time, social media is really great because we can get immediate, up-to-date notifications about what’s happening and if we need to take any immediate precautions, it won’t take weeks to spread the information.”

Camren’s advice for people who are freaking out about the disease is that we aren’t really at a point where we need to worry about the Covid-19 virus in the United States.

“We’re not at a point that you truly do need to freak out and panic,” she said “The disease impacts people differently and it’s really hard to change people’s minds. Here in the United States we really do not need to worry as much as if we were in, say, Italy, Iran, Japan or China as long as you are practicing good personal hygiene. For people that are super worried, just stay away from overly crowded areas of people”

The bottom line is, you shouldn’t believe everything you hear on social media. Fake news can be spread and opinions can be treated like facts. Many people don’t know what they are talking about, so it is very important for you to do your own research. We are not at high risk for the Wuhan Coronavirus and as long as you regularly practice good personal hygiene, you will most likely stay healthy.