降低家人感染冠状病毒几率的七种方法

查看疾病控制和预防中心(疾控中心)和家长网的《新冠肺炎指南》,了解有关统计数据、疾病传播和旅行建议的最新信息。

如果你是父母，你可能会被冠状病毒（以及它引起的疾病，新冠肺炎)的新闻报道所吸引。它已经蔓延到几乎每个国家，使超过2.58亿人患病，并造成至少510万人死亡。美国也有超过4700万确诊病例和773106例死亡。

父母担心是很自然的，但幸运的是，专家表示，通过采取安全预防措施，你的孩子感染冠状病毒的几率更低——这就是为什么口罩和社交距离对未接种疫苗的人如此重要。如果你的孩子真的患上了冠状病毒，它可能不会很严重或危及生命。根据疾病控制和预防中心(疾控中心)的数据，儿童确诊病例往往症状轻微。然而，严重的并发症是可能的——特别是对于免疫功能低下或有潜在疾病的人。

RELATED:关于冠状病毒的所有知识尽管如此，做好准备还是很重要的。这里有八种方法可以降低你家人感染冠状病毒的几率。

冠状病毒是一种呼吸道疾病，就像感冒或流感一样。咳嗽、打喷嚏、说话或呼气产生的污染飞沫可以传播到6英尺远，它们可以通过进入人的眼睛、鼻子或嘴巴来感染人。疾控中心表示，当污染的飞沫停留在空气中时，空气传播也是可能的。根据疾病预防控制中心的说法，考虑到新冠肺炎可能没有症状，这一点尤其可怕，而且它也可能在人们表现出任何症状之前传播。实行政府制定的社会距离标准至关重要。如果你没有接种疫苗，请与他人保持至少6英尺的距离，并避免去高流量的地方，那里更有可能传播。

Practice social distancing.

当你在公共场合时，一定要带上所有的领带

ssary precautions, especially if you aren't vaccinated. For example, you can wipe the grocery cart handle with a disinfectant wipe and avoid direct contact with cashiers. Read more about grocery shopping during a pandemic here.

Wear a mask.

The CDC suggests that unvaccinated people ages 2 and up wear a face mask "in public settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain, especially in areas of significant community-based transmission." Always wear a mask in public if you don't feel well, since the barrier could block your infected droplets from contaminating others. New CDC guidance also suggests that wearing a mask doesn't just benefit those around you—it can protect you as well.

Given the rise of the contagious Delta variant, the CDC now says that vaccinated people should mask up indoors in areas with "substantial or high" community spread. Also, "you might choose to wear a mask regardless of the level of transmission if you have a weakened immune system or if, because of your age or an underlying medical condition, you are at increased risk for severe disease, or if a member of your household has a weakened immune system, is at increased risk for severe disease, or is unvaccinated," says the CDC. Note, however, that the vaccines are still highly effective against severe illness, hospitalization, and death from the coronavirus.

• RELATED: Does Wearing 2 Masks Protect Against COVID-19 Better Than One? Here's What Experts Say

Disinfect your home and belongings.

According to a March 2020 study from National Institutes of Health, CDC, UCLA, and Princeton University scientists, the coronavirus may be able to survive for three hours in the air, four hours on copper, 24 hours on cardboard, and two to three days on stainless steel and plastic. That's why it's important to sanitize key things in your home—such as your countertops after placing grocery bags on them—to lower your chances of getting the coronavirus. Check out this list of other things to clean ASAP to prevent getting sick.

Teach your kids not to touch their faces.

If bacteria-ridden droplets get into a child's nose or mouth, they can become sick with the disease, says Miryam Wahrman, Ph.D., biology professor and director of the microbiology research lab at William Paterson University and author of The Hand Book: Surviving in a Germ-Filled World. Encourage your kids to avoid touching their faces in public.

• RELATED: All About Coronavirus Symptoms in Children and Infants

Make sure kids wash their hands.

The best way to lower your chances of getting the coronavirus is practicing proper hand hygiene, so teach your kids how to wash their hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Make sure they clean up before eating, whenever you return from being in public, and before touching their eyes, nose, and mouth. You can also use hand sanitizer with at least 60 percent alcohol in a pinch, according to Dr. Wahrman.

• RELATED: This Is How to Wash Your Hands So You Don't Get Sick

Use caution when traveling.

The CDC recommends avoiding nonessential domestic and international travel if you're not vaccinated. Check out the latest guidelines and recommendations, and use your discretion before embarking on a trip. You'll need to weigh the benefits against the risk, says Dr. Wahrman. If you do travel by plane, wear a mask, avoid people who look sick, wash your hands often, and disinfect communal items like tray tables.

Get vaccinated when it's your turn.

With three approved vaccines that can help prevent you from becoming sick with COVID-19 being distributed to the public, there's finally light at the end of the tunnel when it comes to the pandemic ending. All Americans 5 and older are now eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine (and younger kids may get approved soon). Major medical organizations urge Americans to get vaccinated when they can.

• RELATED: Everything Parents Need to Know About the Coronavirus Vaccine

Mother and daughter having a serious talk Credit: Tetra Images/Getty Images

• By Nicole Harris