The Wuhan novel CoronaVirus sure royally messed with our Lunar New Year celebrations this year. While it didn’t stop us from house visiting, festivities were heavily dampened with a thousand and one concerns about having to traveling in public, or worse, internationally.
You may have already noticed our dedicated page – qoo10.sg/mask – displaying top and recommended items for protecting yourself against possibly contracting with the virus during this unpredictable period, while the medical community is still rushing to formulate reliable cures and vaccines.
Before we continue, we’d like share a quick public service announcement. In the face of overly dramatic media headlines, and even more fake news spreading, well, faster than the virus itself, make sure that the updates you are consuming come from reliable sources. If you see a media piece that worries you, cross-check it with the relevant news outlets to see if they are reporting the same things. And even if reports are verified by multiple trustworthy outlets, take a moment to consider whether the news actually affects you. Unless it is a situation directly within your control, there’s no point worrying about it, and unnecessarily stressing yourself out.
As for what you can actually control, read on for our checklist of top items you’ll want to have within reach, to minimise the risk of you and your family coming into contact with the virus. Stay safe and healthy everyone, and above all, keep calm and carry on.
Face masks
Face masks – your first line of defence against nasty bugs and pollutants alike (but then if you didn’t already know this, where have you been lah?). In the wake of the Wuhan virus, Singaporeans have generally defaulted to using and purchasing 3M’s N95 masks, probably because of how effective it was against the worst of our hazy periods. Much of the expert advice quoted in media outlets have stated that with water droplets as the primary transmitter of the virus, the surgical masks used in medical environments may be better at keeping infected droplets from reaching you. The trade-off is that surgical masks are paper-thin, far less durable than the stiffer N95 masks. We think that as long as you pick either one of these two types, you’re set. You should also know that pitta masks, while obviously much more long-lasting, are much more effective at blocking out pollen and dust, but not very effective as far as this particular virus is concerned.
PS: to help ensure that Singapore has a sufficient supply of masks to meet the ultra-high demand, we are working hard with our partners in Korea, Japan and Indonesia to import more stocks. If you are still in the market for masks, stay tuned to qoo10.sg/mask for the latest updates!
Thermometers
You don’t need a thermometer around until you need it. It’s never a bad idea to have one, or several, at home. Natural advances in technology have made infrared-based thermometers, particularly those for the ear, much more affordable for consumers today than during the SARS outbreak of 2003, when they were just commercialised, and cost upwards of $200. Infrared thermometers are able to provide readings in less than a second, and for places like schools or gyms where large volumes of people need to be measured, forehead thermometers are particularly helpful since they require zero bodily contact.
Personal hygiene
Short of locking yourself at home, there’s little you can actually do to control the environment around you. And, much as we hate to say it, not every person will act in the best interests of their community. Knowing your arsenal of personal hygiene products will help you effectively keep nasties like the Wuhan virus at bay. Hand sanitisers have been around for awhile now in various capacities and dispensers. Give yourself an extra shield in this climate of unpredictability with anti-bacterial and antiseptic products. Dettol, Lifebuoy, and Walch all have multiple products with such properties.
Area cleansers
It’s tough to exactly keep track of who comes into contact with what at home, and much less in outdoor and public areas. Aside from keeping your own bodies as sterile as possible, you can also do the same for the environments around you. Keep your personal spaces germ-free with pocket-sized disinfectant sprays and antiseptic wet wipes.
Vitamins and supplements
Finally, while taking all manner of kiasu precautions to keep our external body and environment clean, we often forget that there are many ways to also improve our body’s internal constitution. Vitamin products like Redoxon’s vitamin C/zinc effervescents and Sambucol’s black elderberry extract, along with health supplements like cordyceps/lingzhi extract and fermented black garlic/egg yolk extract (yeah this is our first time reading about it too), holistically boosts to our body’s inner systems to put up a stronger defence against not only the Wuhan virus, but any other harmful conditions that may come your way.
