Submitted by Dr. Greg Stewart
The flu season that was not: Masks, distancing and hand washing
For those who think masks, distancing and hand washing are not significant factors in limiting the spread of infectious diseases, you need only look at this year’s flu season. Below is a quote from Public Health Agency of Canada’s Fluwatch, dating through March 20, 2021:
To date this season, there has been no evidence of community circulation of influenza despite continued testing above seasonal levels. Influenza activity has remained below the threshold required to declare the start of the 2020-21 influenza season.
There is no other explanation than: we killed flu season. If you joined others in masking, distancing, and hand washing, you were a part of the solution. We know how flu spreads, and it was stopped by what we did. Without these activities we would have had the regular flu season and one can only imagine how COVID-19 would have spread as it is more contagious. Our death toll would have been devastatingly higher.
Below are two charts to show what you all have done to suppress the spread of airborne infectious disease. This was not expected but it does powerfully demonstrate the effects of our actions.
(FluWatch report / canada.ca)
The box on the left shows that we have done more than the usual number of flu tests this year. The box on the right shows the dotted line as the usual level of positive tests and the red line running along the bottom is this year’s level of positive tests.
It is virtually zero.
If masking, distancing, and hand washing has had such a massive effect on flu, it is not illogical to assume these same activities have had a massive effect on containing the spread of COVID-19. Thousands and thousands of lives have been saved. Well done. Hang in there. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. Please be vaccinated.
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Many thanks to Dr. Stuart for this informative reminder!
Do we know yet, whether vaccinated people can still infect others? Because if they can, and if at the same time a significant portion of unvaccinated, infected people are contagious but asymptomatic, does that mean we are headed for another pandemic wave that is mostly invisible? Many people infected, hardly any showing symptoms?
And if vaccinated people are not infectious, why lock them down too?
@Howard Bargman
Minor note: “The precautions that we take, that reduce the flu numbers, is still not reducing the number of COVID cases. This shows us how much more contagious the COVID virus is.”
I think its important to keep in mind (not for yourself specifically, but more for the broader readership that is reading this article and our comments) that the precautions we have put in place – masking, distancing, shutdowns etc – *have* massively reduced our covid case numbers. In the scenario where we did not implement these policies, our cases would be multiple orders of magnitude worse. The fact that we are seeing cases rise despite these policies is, as you said, a sign of just how transmissible and impactful this virus is.
Critics and skeptics of these public health policies misinterpret/manipulate stats like this to argue that since masking/distancing/etc hasn’t solved the problem outright as an argument for removing these policies, but they are not looking at the whole picture. So I think it’s worth pointing out.
Thanks for your input!
The low numbers of flu indirectly tell us something about COVID virus. The precautions that we take, that reduce the flu numbers, is still not reducing the number of COVID cases. This shows us how much more contagious the COVID virus is.
Secondly, when COVID struck, no one was immune. Now, in Canada, a couple of million people are likely immune, or partially immune because almost one million have had the disease and about 2 million have been vaccinated. And yet the numbers are rising even though about 3 million people are not ( or less) at risk.
We had a very mild flu season as did the rest of the world.
The masks did help probably more than anybody knows.
Now if only we are as lucky with covid 19.
Perhaps if Mr. Ford actually tried? it’s always too little too late.
Mr. Trudeau has done his best? Lol.
His latest effort is just a smoke screen. We need someone with a backbone.
Dr. Stewart, I agree. Hand washing, hand sanitizing, physical distancing, staying within your ‘bubble’ and following other directives have a massive, positive effect on flu and Covid prevention. No one in our family caught a cold, flu, (or Covid) this year or since the introduction of the aforementioned measures. However, I do wonder about the outcome of children ages 6 and under who are not exposed to the usual bacteria and viruses. Some medical experts profess that children of this age group need to be exposed to the ‘world of germs’ (not to Covid) in order to help build a strong immunity system. Thank you for your brief, timely information. As a sociology major, I appreciate the charts. BTW, I have an appointment tomorrow at 12:50 to receive my first vaccine dose; it’s the most exciting (and life changing) outing I’ve had all year!
That’s an argument that is difficult to refute! I have found it interesting, over the past year plus, that some people who believe there is flu virus and it’s effects don’t purport to believe in the Covid virus (and variants), or so you’d think, because no precautions are taken. Completely mystifying.