Page 36 - April-May 2020 Neat

36 Coronavirus Compared to the Flu

How Does the New This happened in 2009 with the swine flu Mother's Day.
pandemic, which is estimated to have infected
Coronavirus Compare up to 1.4 billion people and killed between 4 - One of the earliest Mother's Day
151,000 and 575,000 people worldwide, celebrations was in Ancient Greece
with the Flu? according to the CDC. There is no flu pandemic The Greek would have spring

happening currently. celebrations in honor of Rhea, the goddess of
Continued from Page 35 fertility, motherhood, and generation.
On March 11, the WHO officially declared the
outbreak of COVID-19 a pandemic. This is the 5 - Mother's Day is the busiest day of the year
Since the new coronavirus was first discovered
in January, many people have compared it with first time the WHO has declared a pandemic for for restaurants.
a coronavirus. According to the National Restaurant
a more well-known disease: The flu.
Association, in 2018 about 87 million adults
Prevention made plans to go to a restaurant for Mother's
Another limitation with the case fatality rate is
that some people who are counted as confirmed Day.
cases may eventually die from the disease, Unlike seasonal flu, for which there is a vaccine
which would lead to an increase in the death to protect against infection, there is no vaccine 6 - There were 57.5 million moms in the
rate. For example, South Korea initially reported for COVID-19. But researchers in the U.S. and States.
a case fatality rate of 0.6% in early March, but it around the world are working to develop one. These women are between the ages of 15
later rose to 1.7% by the beginning of April, Advertisement and 50, and have collectively mothered 106.8
according to New Scientist. million children!
In addition, the flu has several treatments
It's also important to note that estimates of flu approved by the Food and Drug Administration 7 - The moniker 'Mom' comes from babies.
illnesses and deaths from the CDC are just that (FDA), including antiviral drugs such as The first thing a baby can vocalize is the
— estimates (which make certain assumptions) amantadine and rimantadine (Flumadine), and 'ma' sound, which is why in almost every
rather than raw numbers. (The CDC does not inhibitors of influenza, such as oseltamivir language the word for mother begins with the
know the exact number of people who become (Tamiflu) and zanamivir (Relenza). In contrast, letter 'M' or is some iteration of the 'ma' sound.
sick with or die from the flu each year in the the FDA has yet to approve any treatments for
U.S. Rather, this number is estimated based on COVID-19, although approval for remdesivir, 8 - The history of American Mother's Day
data collected on flu hospitalizations through an antiviral initially developed to treat Ebola, is starts with peacemaker Ann Jarvis.
surveillance in 13 states.) . A recent study posted pending. During and following the Civil War, Ann
on the preprint database medRxiv emphasized Jarvis made a concerted effort to foster
this point when it found that the number of In general, the CDC recommends the following friendship and community between the mothers
confirmed and probable COVID-19 deaths in to prevent the spread of respiratory viruses, on both sides of the war. She started a committee
New York City was 21 times higher than the which include both coronaviruses and flu in 1868 which established the first glimmer of
number of reported flu deaths over the same viruses: Wash your hands often with soap and today's holiday: "Mother's Friendship Day."
period, from Feb. 1 to April 18. water for at least 20 seconds; avoid touching
your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed 9 - Ann's daughter Anna continued her legacy
Virus transmission hands; avoid close contact with people who are by creating the official holiday.
sick; stay home when you are sick; and clean Anna Reeves Jarvis sought to honor her
and disinfect frequently touched objects and own mother by establishing an intimate day of
The measure scientists use to determine how
surfaces. observance that is very obviously the basis of
easily a virus spreads is known as the "basic
today's holiday. The very first Mother's Day was
reproduction number," or R0 (pronounced R-
Wearing cloth face coverings in public and celebrated in 1908.
nought). This is an estimate of the average
number of people who catch the virus from a practicing social distancing — or staying at least
6 feet (1.8 meters) away from other people — is 10 - Woodrow Wilson signed Mother's Day
single infected person, Live science previously
also recommended to prevent the spread of into law in 1914.
reported. The flu has an R0 value of about 1.3,
COVID-19. [] After Anna Jarvis created the Mother's
according to The New York Times.
Day International Association in order to
streamline the intimate day of observance to the
Researchers are still working to determine the
R0 for COVID-19. Preliminary studies 20 Mother's Day Facts to second Sunday in May, Woodrow Wilson
legitimized the celebration as a nationwide
estimated an R0 value for the new coronavirus
to be between 2 and 3, according to a review Share With Your Mom holiday.
study published Feb. 28 in the journal JAMA.
11 - Anna Jarvis would later try to stop what
This means each infected person has spread the Start off Mom's special day with a little holiday
Mother's Day became.
virus to an average of 2 to 3 people. trivia.
The holiday quickly became a
commercialized opportunity for producers to
Some studies suggest COVID-19 has an even 1 - Mother's Day isn't always on the same
sell flowers, candies, and cards. Anna Reeves
higher R0 value. For example, a study published date each year.
Jarvis felt this was detracting from the personal
April 7 in the journal Emerging Infectious The holiday is celebrated every year on
and intimate aspects of the holiday and defied
Disease used mathematical modeling to the second Sunday of May. This year it will be
this by starting boycotts, walkouts, and even
calculate an R0 of nearly 6 in China. on May 10th.
condemned first lady Eleanor Roosevelt for
using the day as a means of fundraising. Jarvis
It's important to note that R0 is not a constant 2 - More calls are made on Mother's Day than
would eventually use all her money in this fight,
number. Estimates can vary by location, any other day of the year.
and died at the age of 84 in a sanatorium.
depending on such factors as how often people Approximately 122 million calls are
come into contact with each other and the efforts made on the second Sunday of May.
12 - In 2018, over $23 Billion was spent on
taken to reduce viral spread.
Mother's Day.
3 - Mother's Day is the third highest selling
On average, shoppers spend $180 on
Pandemics holiday for flowers and plants.
gifts for their mothers. A nationwide total of
After Christmas and Hanukkah, more
$4.6 billion was spent on jewelry and $4.4
Seasonal flu, which causes outbreaks every year, people buy flowers and plants for their moms on
billion on dinners or brunches.
should not be confused with pandemic flu, or a Mother's Day than any other holiday. Around
global outbreak of a new flu virus that is very approximately one quarter of all the flowers
(Continued on Page 39)
different from the strains that typically circulate. purchased throughout the year are bought for