A SENSIBLE discussion of the risks

[marybourg]

involved in getting deliveries and a common sense approach to dealing with them. Yes, over-the-top you tube video showing level 4 biohazard remediation for food handling, I AM referencing you.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/03/26/dont-panic-about-shopping-getting-delivery-or-accepting-packages/

[uppityperson]

1. K&R

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

2. I'm glad to see this. I watched the youtube video and thought it was

a bit much, and reminded myself that not all doctors know what they're talking about regarding areas outside their specialties. That guy could have been a dermatologist or a proctologist, but what we really need is the advice of a virologist or a public health expert - like the author of the WaPo article. But still, I've been worrying a bit. I sequestered myself in my house two weeks ago and have been having groceries and other stuff delivered instead of going to stores, and have been taking things out of the boxes on the porch, leaving them outside and taking them directly to the recycling bin, and then wiping the products down with disinfectant almost as compulsively as the doctor in the video. But the WaPo article says this level of disinfecting isn't really necessary, and why, which is nice to know.

It would be useful to have some evidence that people are (or are not) getting sick from touching packages or other surfaces when they have had absolutely no exposure to other people for the entire duration of the incubation period. I suppose that would be difficult to determine, though, without identifying a significant number of people who got cv without any human contact.

[marybourg]

3. Your opinion is one I respect very much here on DU.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

6. Thank you!

[Act_of_Reparation]

4. There's a degree of "playing it safe" that I feel is acceptable, even if over-the-top.

We don't know how long these little bastards survive on a surface, we don't know for certain if there is an oral route to infection. In all likelihood, we're overdoing it with the sanitization, but why roll the dice at this point, eh?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

5. I'll probably keep doing what I've been doing; I just won't worry quite as much.

[MoonlitKnight]

7. You can focus on disinfecting the package

Or wash your hands after handing anything suspicious.

My simple method is to avoid unsealed foods that are consumed raw - like salad. And instead eat cooked food using normal safe handling and sanitation. If you get chips, pour some into a bowl to eat. Wash hands then pick up the bowl and enjoy.

[marybourg]

8. Another informative and sensible discussion:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/24/health/coronavirus-mail-packages.html?action=click&module=Spotlight&pgtype=Homepage

For those who can’t or don’t want to read the whole article, which is mostly about mail in times of epidemic, and very interesting, I think the best advice was summed up here:

“The bottom line is that there is some hypothetical risk of viable viruses surviving on mail,” Dr. Lloyd-Smith said. “But given the time periods involved, this seems like a pretty minimal risk to the general public.”

Ben Chapman, a food safety specialist at North Carolina State University who studies the interaction of pathogens and surfaces, agreed that although the virus can persist on packages, these have not been identified as a risk factor for transmission. Nonetheless, he said, “I’d just wash my hands after handling,” rather than spray with Lysol or wipe with bleach. “I want to preserve the good sanitizers for risky things, and hand washing works just as well as spraying.” “