GARLIC BREATH?
Smell test one way to help keep public safe
BOOZING Brits should keep “garlic-breath distance” from each other in beer gardens to stop Covid-19 spreading.
Consultant virologist Dr Julian Tang said if you can “smell your friend’s lunch” you are too close and could be vulnerable to infection.
He claimed the smelly breath test was the best way to keep the virus at bay and prevent a third wave following the easing of lockdown restrictions this week.
Millions celebrated the rule relaxations by descending on pub beer gardens, outdoor eating areas, shops, gyms and hairdressers.
Comedian Peter above, was known for catchphrase “garlic
Kay, his bread it’s the future” and the potent smell of the pub snack would be a good way to judge distance. Dr Tang, of Leicester Royal Infirmary, said: “The way this virus transmits is really through conversational distance within one metre. “When you’re talking to a friend or sharing the same air as you’re listening to your friend talking we call it the garlic-breath distance. So if you can smell your friend’s lunch you’re inhaling some of that air as well as any virus that’s inhaled with it.
“The indoor airborne environment needs to be improved and that can be done with ventilation.”
The British Medical Association agreed that more needed to be done to promote the importance of fresh air.
Pubs, bars, restaurants, workplaces and other public settings should be given ventilation guidance as they prepare to bring customers indoors again, it said.
An article in the British Medical Journal emphasised the importance of aerosol transmission of the virus.
The authors, from the universities of Leicester, Hong Kong, Edinburgh Napier, and Virginia Tech in the US, said the “tiniest suspended particles can remain airborne for hours”.
It also claimed the risk of Covid spreading from touching surfaces was now considered “relatively minimal”.
Dr Chaand Nagpaul, of the BMA, said clean airflow was crucial in preventing transmission. He revealed: “As restrictions are eased, we must ensure adequate ventilation.”
Research has shown that 999 out of 1,000 Covid patients contracted the virus indoors.