During the early days of the lockdown, there were only a few cases of COVID-19 in the US. So, I thought “It might only take a couple of months to get this under control.” But now, we are almost into the 6th month of the lockdown and COVID-19 is still widespread. It is almost the end of “Summer Vacation Locked in a 3D Pentagon” and it is horrible. All I could do was, discover some new topics and play online games. I can list so many things that I missed over the summer, like swimming and cricket practice, play with my friends outdoor, and go on a cruise ship. Thanks to the pandemic, kids like me are stuck indoors. All this made me think, “Did a pandemic strike for the first time, or has history repeated itself?”

After doing some research, I found out that these types of pandemics are not new. We have gone through SARS, MERS, Ebola, and a major one, the “Spanish Flu”(lasted for 3 years). In my opinion, history has been repeating itself. These pandemics have been cycling. After a huge pandemic gets under control, another pandemic strikes again a few years later. Since the world has experienced previous pandemics, we should learn from it and take the right precautions.

Let’s take the “Spanish Flu” as an example. This flu lasted for 3 long years, from February 1918 to April 1920. This deadly influenza was caused by the H1N1 type A virus. I started to wonder “What are the similarities between COVID-19 and the Spanish Flu?” I found that the COVID-19 and the Spanish flu had many things in common.

Both pandemics were highly contagious, unlike SARS and MERS.

Both viruses spread all over the world.

There are many conspiracy theories on how these viruses came into existence, but none of the theories are proven.

It is estimated that more than 50 million people died of the Spanish Flu. COVID-19 has infected 17 million people and counting, in just 8 months. More than 676 thousand people have already died because of COVID-19.

The WHO and CDC have provided recommendations and guidelines, like washing hands for 20 seconds many times a day, wear a mask and maintain social distancing while outside, and disinfect the solid surfaces to keep them clean. When I told my grandmother about those guidelines she chuckled and said, “When I was your age, I used to follow most of these practices whether there is a pandemic or not.” In the olden days, people followed strict dietary, cleanliness, and social distancing protocols. Today’s generation does not practice these hygienic habits. That is why illnesses can easily spread, from one person to the other.

We have been through such pandemics before and have emerged strong. It may take time to produce a vaccine, but till then we should follow all the guidelines that the CDC and WHO have provided.

 

This article was first published on Medium on August 1, 2o2o by Aarnav Bhat