The virus actually has a better chance of being killed off in summer.
The snow is sneaking up and the wind is creeping in. So, what’s the scoop? Is it true the cold weather will really kill off COVID-19?
Unfortunately, experts are saying this is not going to be one of our prized holiday gifts.
According to the Mayo Clinic on Facebook, cold weather and snow killing off the novel coronavirus is nothing but a myth. The cold, hard, truth, (no pun intended), is that viruses can thrive very well throughout the winter months. As the Mayo Clinic states,
“There is no scientific evidence to believe colder weather can kill COVID-19 or other viruses. The normal human body temperature remains around 36.5 C to 37 C, regardless of the external temperature or weather.”
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But what about the virus being killed off on surfaces? If a door handle is outside in the brutal winter weather, and someone who is infected with COVID-19 touches it with their germy hands, will the virus survive for long on the handle? If you touch it an hour later, can you infect yourself?
Using a source we have referenced here before, we’ll quote some facts. The short answer is ‘yes’. According to the state of New Jersey, the cold weather can actually make things worse.
A study done in 2010 on coronaviruses similar to that causing COVID-19 revealed the viruses can survive in cold temperatures for an impressively long time. At 4 degrees C, (40 degrees F) and 20% relative humidity, over two thirds of the viruses studied survived for 28 days. Researchers also thought the viruses can survive a stint in your freezer.
So, coronaviruses actually survive better on surfaces at cold temperatures than they do in summer months. Yes, it’s goodbye summer and hello new abyss.
COVID-19 in Canada’s North
Feel like you need some more concrete proof that COVID-19 truly loves snowball fights? You can simply look to Canada.
Until recently, Canada’s northern territory of Nunavut, an immense, very sparsely populated region that forms the majority of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, was actually COVID-19-free. Yes, miraculously the area stayed entirely free and clear of the coronavirus. This is in large part due to the territory’s isolated location and the limited number of people coming and going from it.
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But in the first week of November, disaster arrived. The first case of COVID-19 hit Nunavut. Now, just weeks later at the time of this writing, there are 60 active cases of COVID-19 in the area. This may seem low but what is even lower is the number of hospitals in the region, which has prompted Nunavut to go into sudden full lockdown.
This whole scenario shows that COVID-19 really does love cold weather, and the colder the better. How cold is preferable? It’s currently about -17 degrees celsius up in Nunavut for reference, according to the Weather Channel.
So, take those gloves off, apply your hand sanitizer, breathe an icy sigh of relief from under your mask, and then put everything back on again. Stay safe.
Pfizer’s Freezing Vaccine
Beyond COVID-19 beginning to thrive in the far north, you could say that further proof it likes the cold can be found in Pfizer’s hopefully-soon-to-be-approved coronavirus vaccine. This could be debatable but it is eyebrow raising. Trials of this vaccine have gone well. Pfizer’s vaccine is said to be 95% effective at protecting people from the novel coronavirus. And one of the weirdest things about it is that this vaccine needs to be stored at minus 70 degrees Celsius. This, as NPR points out, is colder than winter in Antarctica.
Of course, this vaccine does not contain live SARS-CoV-2 virus and is made from mRNA. It’s not really a coronavirus at all. The reason the vaccine needs to be kept so cold is that the mRNA in it can be very easily destroyed by various enzymes, and this can happen more readily at warmer temperatures. Freezing the vaccine is like putting your food in the freezer to keep it from spoiling, experts say.
So, yes, mRNA is a different thing than a coronavirus, but if these viruses are like your favorite popsicle that stays intact best at the back of the freezer, don’t be fooled. Those public door handles are now even more dangerous as we head into December and beyond. Wash. Your. Hands. Do as mama says and stay safe, kids.
photo credits: Polsole/Shutterstock.com
