CNN – The coronavirus variant that first originated in the United Kingdom is now the dominant variant in the United States.
SARS-CoV-2 variant B.1.1.7 is present in all 50 U.S. states and contributes to increased coronavirus infection, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Not only does it seem more transmissible; some research also suggests that it can cause more serious illnesses, putting more people at risk of hospitalization and death.
What should people do to protect themselves from this more contagious variant? We asked CNN medical analyst Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician and visiting professor of health policy and management at George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health. She is also the author of the forthcoming book “Lines of Life: A Doctor’s Journey in the Struggle for Public Health.”
CNN: What should we do differently now that variant B.1.1.7 has become dominant in the United States?
Dr. Leana Wen: Variant B.1.1.7 is more transmissible than previous strains, which means we need to be even more careful. Some activities that we previously thought had a low risk, such as going to the grocery store and taking public transportation, now have a higher risk of virus transmission. Those who once had a high risk, such as going to indoor bars or gathering in a large number of people, now have an even higher risk.
We need to be even more on guard than before. For example, if you eat outdoors in a restaurant, make sure they comply with CDC guidelines and that there is a minimum of 6 feet of distance between tables. Those who are not yet fully vaccinated should wait until they are vaccinated before eating too close with another person at their table.
That said, this variant spreads just like other variants. The same measures we used before to prevent the spread of coronavirus are still effective. This means wearing a mask in public, practicing physical distancing, and avoiding meetings indoors with people who are not from your home.
It’s even more critical that you never get vaccinated as soon as it’s your turn.
CNN: Do vaccines work against this variant?
Wen: Yes, and that’s a really important point. All currently authorized vaccines offer a good level of protection against B.1.1.7 (remember that no vaccine is 100% effective, but that getting vaccinated against Covid-19 means that you have a much lower risk of getting the disease and suffering serious illnesses of her). There are other variants against which vaccines may be a little less effective. However, vaccines remain the key tool to prevent these other variants, and still other variants that may be developed in the future.
Viruses mutate when they replicate. The best way to prevent virus mutation is to stop the spread. We help slow down and stop the spread when we get vaccinated.
CNN: What about this variant that makes it especially dangerous for young people?
Wen: In recent weeks, we have seen that younger people are becoming infected in higher proportions. This also includes teenagers in their twenties, 30s and 40s. This is probably due to a combination of factors.
Older people are the ones who were vaccinated first and are therefore more protected. Many young people are not yet vaccinated and, given their increased level of activity, when there is a more contagious variant, they are more likely to become infected. There may also be something about B.1.1.7 that makes it easier to adhere to the respiratory system and makes people have more viruses, possibly more diseases, and make them more infectious to others.
All of this suggests that it is not so much that the virus somehow preferentially attacks young people, but that younger people are more vulnerable, as many have not been vaccinated.
CNN: What should we do to avoid getting infected with this more transmissible variant?
Wen: For people who are not vaccinated, they should try to vaccinate as soon as possible. This is the best defense against this variant and others.
Until they can be vaccinated, they should duplicate all precautions. Again, this means wearing a mask in all public places. Studies have shown that it helps to wear two masks: a well-fitting fabric mask on top of a surgical mask. You would wear two masks like this or an N95 mask in higher risk environments, such as if you use public transportation or attend an indoor church service with a lot of people around you.
Try to avoid more risky settings where people don’t have masks on, such as indoor food. Socialize outdoors only, with members from different households at least 6 feet apart.
CNN: The CDC has specifically pointed to youth sports as drivers of infections. Should these stop?
Wen: It’s true that in Michigan and Minnesota, among other places, there have been outbreaks associated with youth sports. With this B.1.1.7 variant more transmissible and the fact that young people under the age of 16 cannot yet be vaccinated, it is best to be careful.
Sports that can be practiced outdoors will be much safer than those that are practiced indoors. Contact sports, such as wrestling, will have a much greater risk than, for example, football or lacrosse. Players should wear masks at all times when physical distancing cannot be maintained. Periodic surveillance tests of all players can help, for example, if a test is done on everyone twice a week to check for asymptomatic infection.
It is very important for parents to control the informal setting as much as the formal setting. You wouldn’t want to follow all the precautions during organized sports, just for the broadcast to take place at the post-match pizza party. Or that student-athletes leave the guard and transmit the virus to the locker room if everyone gathers there without masks for long periods of time.
Ideally, such social interactions are limited for the time being, with strict precautions followed to prevent the spread of the virus and allow for most of the actual sport and face-to-face schooling.
CNN: What about people who are completely vaccinated: do they still have to take the same precaution?
Wen: The vaccines we have work very well against variant B.1.1.7. Fully vaccinated people should know that they are very well protected against this strain. “Fully vaccinated” means that at least two weeks have passed since someone received their vaccines.
Nothing is 100%. What people choose to do once fully vaccinated will depend on their values and decisions. After getting vaccinated, activities that previously had a high risk will be lower risk, but there will still be some risk. This needs to be weighed in relation to the benefit of these activities.
The CDC says fully vaccinated people can be seen and can visit another home with unvaccinated family members, as long as people who are not vaccinated are not at high risk for serious Covid-19 outcomes. You definitely need to wear masks in public places, even after getting vaccinated, and reduce time in high-risk environments, such as crowded indoor places with unvaccinated people.
I’ve advocated thinking about a “coronavirus budget,” essentially, knowing that not everything can be done, but that you should choose the things that are most important to you.
CNN: Even with a different variant, your final advice is to follow the same protection measures we are already following?
Wen: That’s right. We must keep in mind that the pandemic is not over. There is absolutely hope and hope is here, but we still need to be cautious, especially because of this more contagious variant.
Please continue to mask, distance yourself physically, and avoid meetings inside. Try to get vaccinated as soon as possible. Vaccination is the key to preventing this virus from continuing to spread and potentially make many people sick.