Here's a bit more on masks....etc
I think the opening sentence expresses the way we all feel - but may say it differently
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When experts recommend wearing masks, staying at least six feet away from others, washing your hands frequently and avoiding crowded spaces, what they’re really saying is: Try to minimize the amount of virus you encounter.
The immune system can see off a few viral particles without making you sick. But how much is needed for an infection to take root?
It wouldn’t be ethical for scientists to expose people to different doses of the coronavirus, as they do with milder cold viruses. Common respiratory viruses, like influenza and other coronaviruses, should offer some insight. But researchers have found little consistency.
For SARS, also a coronavirus, the estimated infective dose is just a few hundred particles. For MERS, it is much higher, on the order of thousands.
The new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, is more similar to SARS and, therefore, the infectious dose may be hundreds of particles, Dr. Rasmussen said.
But the virus has a history of defying predictions.
Generally, people who harbor high levels of pathogens — whether from
influenza,
H.I.V. or
SARS — tend to have more severe symptoms and are more likely to pass on the infection.
But with the new coronavirus, people who have no symptoms may have
just as much virus in their bodies as those who are seriously ill, some studies suggest.