Nasal sprays are not recommended by officials to stop Coronavirus, the Isle of Wight’s public health chief has warned.
It comes as people are turning to different ways to protect themselves against the latest strain of Covid-19 which is 70 per cent more transmissible.
At a meeting of the Local Outbreak Engagement Board yesterday (Thursday), Cllr Stuart Hutchinson had said there had been an increase in advertising for nasal sprays which allegedly coated the nasal passages and in turn the virus, stopping it from getting into people’s lungs and spreading further.
Bryant: We are not recommending any of them
Asked about the effectiveness of the sprays, the Island’s director of public health, Simon Bryant, urged people to be careful when seeing this kind of advertisement.
He said,
“We know this virus spreads through droplets from our mouth and nose, so we need to prevent the spread by stopping that transmission through to other people.
“There are a lot of things on the market which say they will make a difference – please do not buy those unless they are recommended and we are not recommending any of them.”
Hands, face, space and ventilate
Public Health England has looked at the best was to stop the spread of the virus, in light of the new variant, and said it was clear the transmission was around the hands and face.
Mr Bryant encouraged people to continue to take action against the spread by washing hands frequently, not touching your face, wearing a mask and ventilating rooms when people are indoors.
The new variant of the virus, which has caused Covid rates on the Island to skyrocket, is accountable for 90 per cent of the Isle of Wight’s cases.
This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which OnTheWight is taking part in. Some alterations and additions may have been made by OnTheWight. Ed
Image: Diana Polekhina under CC BY 2.0
