The Delta Variant. You’ve heard the words. It’s on everyone’s mind. And no, it’s not a new airline offer or new sorority. But what exactly is the Delta Variant?
First identified in India, the Delta Variant is a new contagious strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus (now known as coronavirus) and began appearing in March in the United States. The emerging new strain of virus is not new and according to many disease specialists--it’s very common. All viruses evolve and change as our bodies continue to develop defenses aided by modern medicine. Recent studies show so far, people who are fully vaccinated against coronavirus seem to have protection against the Delta Variant. However, it’s still important to practice and adhere to preventive measures.
What you Should Know About the Delta Variant
According to an article published by Yale Medicine, here are a few things you should know about the Delta Variant.
Delta is more contagious than the other virus strains--Although hospitalizations and deaths from coronavirus are dropping, Delta has already made up more than 20% of cases in the U.S. according to CDC estimates.
Unvaccinated people are at risk --people who have not been fully vaccinated against coronavirus are at higher risk. It’s important to maintain social-distancing and mask wearing in situations where there is a high level of younger children who have not been approved for vaccination.
There is still more to learn about Delta--there are still a lot of unknowns whether the Delta strain will make you sicker than the original virus. Experts are constantly learning more information regarding how Delta affects the body and symptoms that may be different than the original. There are also early and ongoing studies regarding the effectiveness of vaccines against these mutations. Unfortunately, it’s still too early to tell the effectiveness of the vaccines against the mutations and whether or not vaccinated individuals will need another booster shot to protect against Delta but experts urge that vaccination is the best protection.
“Like everything in life, this is an ongoing risk assessment,” says Dr. Inci Yildirim, a Yale Medicine pediatric infectious disease specialist. “If it is sunny and you’ll be outdoors, you put on sunscreen. If you are in a crowded gathering, potentially with unvaccinated people, you put your mask on and keep social-distancing. If you are unvaccinated and eligible for the vaccine, the best thing you can do is to get vaccinated.
Whether you are vaccinated or not, we still need to exercise caution as even experts are taking this new strain very seriously.
