Can farting spread the coronavirus?

[Cartoonist]

We are warned to cover our mouths when sneezing or coughing. Is wearing pants sufficient protection?

[PJMcK]

1. I'm sure this is a great concern for the CDC and WHO (n/t)

[Pachamama]

32. Actually - the EPA

[milestogo]

2. Only if you're using your asshole to breathe.

[Cartoonist]

6. I mean protecting others.

[FoxNewsSucks]

8. Some people,

Like tRump, use theirs to speak

[Jarqui]

15. Might be a real problem for Trump ... nt

[Tree-Hugger]

38. Works for Trump nt

[Beakybird]

3. I'll ask my farter. I mean father.

[Jamastiene]

4. No, it cannot. n/t

[Cartoonist]

5. Why not?

Does our colon act as a purifier?

[Blue Owl]

7. Not sure if you're gaslighiting or being serious...

[Cartoonist]

11. I'm trying to be funny

But this is a tough room. I can take one of my jokes for falling flat, but I am amazed when people take them seriously.

[Cirque du So-What]

22. Too soon, really

Almost 30 years hence, AIDS jokes are still not funny.

[enid602]

27. 40

Forty years, actually.

[Cirque du So-What]

37. Proves my point even better

[Cartoonist]

43. Unproven

No comparison.

[Cirque du So-What]

44. You're the funny guy, right?

[Cartoonist]

46. Just an amateur

[Polybius]

42. There was no indication that you were joking

Some of us can't detect sarcasm.

[Cartoonist]

47. Apparently

I subscribe to the theory that if you have to explain a joke, then it's not funny. Sort of the same thing.

[Different Drummer]

55. Good one!

[Blues Heron]

9. better light them just to be safe

[Cartoonist]

18. Business idea

A lighter you can put in your pants that you can activate when passing gas.

[superpatriotman]

10. Burn your undies

Nt

[Javaman]

12. no, it acts as repeller.

[FreepFryer]

13. Maybe. Plumes of fecal material are a possible vector, with a wide range of communicability

SARS and Wuhan viruses bind to the same distinctly shaped protein receptors in the body that are expressed in the lungs and intestines, making these organs the primary targets for both viruses, said Fang Li, an associate professor of veterinary and biomedical sciences at the University of Minnesota.

The discovery of the Wuhan virus, dubbed 2019-nCoV, in the fecal material of the 35-year-old man treated at the Providence Regional Medical Center Everett in Washington is “interesting,” said Scott Lindquist, the state epidemiologist for infectious disease at Washington’s Department of Health.

“That adds to the knowledge about this,” he told reporters on a conference call Friday. “It’s not only excreted in your respiratory secretions, it’s also secreted in your stool.”

... A virus-laden aerosol plume emanating from a SARS patient with diarrhea was implicated in possibly hundreds of cases at Hong Kong’s Amoy Gardens housing complex in 2003. That led the city’s researchers to understand the importance of the virus’s spread through the gastrointestinal tract, and to recognize both the limitation of face masks and importance of cleanliness and hygiene, Nicholls said in an interview.

“I think in Wuhan, that would be a very likely place where you might get the transmission” from fecal material, he said. “If it’s using the same receptor as for SARS, I can’t see why it shouldn’t be replicating in the gut.”

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-02-01/coronavirus-lurking-in-feces-may-reveal-hidden-risk-of-spread

[Cartoonist]

17. Thanks for that

I was being facetious, but a serious look is always valuable.

[oasis]

21. Scary to imagine! nt

[Renew Deal]

14. That's actually a good question

It can be spread from handling feces. I also heard something about vapors leaving the toilet, so its a good question.

[greatauntoftriplets]

16. OMG, I'm in trouble!

And what about dog farts?

[rurallib]

19. Try to keep your head from close encounters with assholes

Try to maintain at least 6 feet between your mouth and nose and the source of the gas expulsion

[Alliepoo]

20. Ooooooohhh!!!

Good business opportunity- Butt Masks!!!!!! Lol!!

[LiberalLoner]

23. Here you go

https://fashionfirstaid.com/products/subtle-butt-disposable-or-reusable-gas-neutralizers

[Cartoonist]

25. Will my insurance cover that?

[LiberalLoner]

40. LOL!

[LanternWaste]

24. Only if we pretend they're panicking...

at which point, we get to pretend even a simple question is an overreaction.

Pretense seems the best overall preventative measure to ward off the viral human condition.

[dem4decades]

26. Probably, that's why Trump is covering his ass

[littlemissmartypants]

50. DUzy. nt

[Throck]

28. Only if it's wet.

If the sender suddenly starts crossing their eyes, run...............

[Cartoonist]

34. Humorless

eom

[tenderfoot]

39. 5th Grader

eom

[Cartoonist]

41. Ad hominem master

Taking after Trump?

[guillaumeb]

30. So when Trump speaks......?

[lapfog_1]

31. I think it depends on your party affiliation

If you are a republican... you have your head stuffed up your own asshole so far that farts are effectively blocked.

If you are a Trumpublican... you have your heads so far up Trumps arse that you will all get sick and die if he happens to catch Covid-19.

The rest of us are likely OK.

[Jirel]

33. Serious response - possibly.

We don’t know all that much about transmission right now. However, this virus is similar to SARS. SARS could spread through feces, and in one large incident it was known to spread through “aerosolized” feces through the shafts in an apartment building.

https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa032867

But most likely, no. The SARS incident was something like a giant fart. However, it was SUSTAINED contamination going through an apartment building into others’ homes, not a brief puff on a sidewalk.

[Cartoonist]

35. What about in an elevator?

[Rollo]

36. Oh, great. Now there's going to be run on N95 underwear...

[lame54]

45. Does a Trump speech count?

[Cartoonist]

48. Trump spreads the moronovirus.

Ivanka has been to China.

[littlemissmartypants]

49. Better safe than sorry.

And all jokes aside, put the toilet lid down before you flush. Seriously.

A toilet plume is the dispersal of microscopic particles as a result of flushing a toilet. Normal use of a toilet by healthy people is considered unlikely to be a major health risk. There is indirect evidence that specific pathogens such as norovirus or SARS coronavirus could potentially be spread by toilet aerosols, but as of 2015, no direct experimental studies had clearly demonstrated or refuted actual disease transmission from toilet aerosols. It has been hypothesized that dispersal of pathogens may be reduced by closing the toilet lid before flushing, and by using toilets with lower flush energy.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toilet_plume

[at140]

51. Only in an elevator..nt

[Historic NY]

52. I think Lucky charms should weight in on this.

[appleannie1]

53. Only if your asshole is below your nose like trump's is.

[Sneederbunk]

54. No, but it is about as bad.

[Fritz Walter]

56. funny you should ask

At his first “CaronaVirus” task force meeting, VP Mike Pence ordered “Butt plugs for everyone!” and diverted funds from CDC and NIH to cover the costs. Paying retail, of course.

[Ilsa]

57. If the virus can survive in the stomach and intestines,

wouldn't it possibly be shed in feces?

Is the virus solely respiratory? Or do you get sick by ingesting it?

[jmowreader]

58. Wearing pants is sufficient protection if your name is Donald Trump...

...or anyone else with severe enough rectocranial inversion to see supporting that jackass as a good idea.