World

Coronavirus: Avoid, kissing, hugging, handshake to prevent spread - Scientist

Thursday, February 13, 2020 at 10:29 AM by Joseph Omotayo

- Professor John Oxford, a scientist in the UK, has enjoined people to reorder the way they socially interact with others

- The scientist said that things like handshaking, hugging, and kissing should be avoided to curb the spread of coronavirus

- Oxford added that following the above precautions is better than wearing masks as a preventive measure

Professor John Oxford, a scientist from Queen Mary University, has advised people to abstain from kissing and hugging as a way to reduce the spread of coronavirus.

The professor described his proposed method of protection as the “British standoffishness”, saying the virus is dependent on close contacts, Daily Mail reports.

His message is coming hours before Valentine's Day when lovers are expected to express love in peculiar ways.

It should be noted that the virus has killed more than 1,000 people and has infected almost 46,000 worldwide, with eight cases from Britain.

Read also

You don't care about the man, you care about the okada he is using to carry you around - Seun Kuti shares take on ban

The scientist said that the change in human social interaction will go a long way to curb the spread of coronavirus.
Source: Getty Images

In an interview with the BBC, the scientist said that people’s social actions have to be reordered to reflect a new way of social interaction.

Oxford said changing the traditional ways of interaction like handshaking, hugging, and kissing is more important than the popular precaution of wearing masks.

Meanwhile, Legit.ng earlier reported that the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and eight states across Nigeria were listed by the World Health Organisation as states at high risk of a coronavirus outbreak.

WHO mapped out the states - Lagos, Kano, Cross River, Akwa Ibom, Port Harcourt, Enugu, Delta and Bayelsa - as top priority areas for preparedness against the Novel coronavirus outbreak in Nigeria.

Speaking on the possible outbreak of the disease in Nigeria, the technical officer on health emergency programme for WHO, Dhamari Naidoo, said Nigeria was self-assessed as high in a risk assessment by the organisation.