Just had my flu jab in a local pharmacy. The woman launched at my arm without warning like she was throwing a javelin. Then she said I needed to keep an eye on a mole I’ve had on my arm for as long as I can remember. Put the fear of god in me.
Then asked if I wanted a blood pressure check. No!
For a start I want to see more honesty about the effects that a Covid infection can have, information is key to getting people to act differently. It isn't just another 'winter' virus, it's constantly changing creating waves throughout the year. As I've previously said, it goes far beyond the symptomatic phase and can cause so many other conditions, hiding that from the public is terrible. If I didn't post about these problems, I'm sure most people on here wouldn't know about that.
The lie that Covid is just a cold needs to be stopped and good messaging is key.
People need to know that it is an airborne virus and that if there is an infected person in a setting with poor ventilation, then they can breathe in the virus and become infected themselves. If a building can't be fitted with air cleaning systems, then portable cleaners need to be used, especially in schools. CO2 monitors are a good indication of the cleanliness of the air, the higher the CO2 levels, the poorer the air quality will be. It's interesting to note that new air filtration systems were put in place in the House of Commons & Lords and associated buildings during the early stage of the pandemic. They knew that the Sars Cov-2 virus was airborne.
Making going out when infected needs to be made anti-social. The new Government has made a start in making staying at home if ill possible, by paying statutory sick pay from day one. Make working from home if infectious, the norm.
Make testing for Covid cheaper.
Children shouldn't be sent to school if unwell, an academy group recently told parents that they should send their children to school if unwell, and that they would be looked after by staff away from the classroom if they needed a break. That is madness, and they had to quickly back track due to the outcry.
Putting a stop to the notion that getting infected by any virus is good for your immunity, it isn't and any virus can cause long term sequelae.
Masking in medical settings in particular, so many people go into a hospital and contract Covid whilst they are there.
Better surveillance, most countries were testing waste water long after the UK stopped it.
Greater emphasis on vaccination for all.
The cost to the economy/health of so much sickness is enormous and needs to be addressed.
1.
Ive long thought the battle through it and soldier on attitude by many is a ridiculous and potentially dangerous attitude. You are I believe correct that going out and going to work when full of a cold or other illness should become socially unacceptable. Years.
2.
Exposure to any virus does not necessarily have good outcomes but being exposed to a virus primes the body’s immune system to make antibodies and recognise subsequent infections. Regular exposure keeps the body’s immune system alert to a certain extent. Over many generations we have of course been exposed to common viruses time and time again and have unequivocally developed some immunity. By way of extreme example. The Aztecs were wiped out after being exposed to viruses and germs they had never been exposed to and had no immunity to, brought by European colonisers. 5.8 million people died of smallpox in two decades in the immediate wake of Spanish colonisation. DNA studies have shown that the real suspect for extinction was Salmonella, known to have been in Europe during the Middle Ages and brought to the new world in livestock by the Spanish. Not a virus at all but a bacterium but still deadly to a virgin immune system.
Aren’t these two paragraphs in contradiction to each other? I disagree with the idea in 1 largely due to what is said in 2.
Not sure I see your point although that could be me. I definitely agree that people shouldn’t go to work or socialise if they are ill. That work ethos of soldiering on is ridiculous. The second point doesn’t suggest that people should not worry about passing on their bugs but merely that just by living we come into contact with all sorts of viruses and bacteria. We eventually through such contacts gain to some extent a level of immunity.
My point is that by ’soldiering on’ we then come into contact more, pass ’on their bugs’ and get more immunity. I too find ’soldiering on’ rather silly but the general idea of carrying on without restrictions to freedom does, as in paragraph 2 states, increase immunity.
For a start I want to see more honesty about the effects that a Covid infection can have, information is key to getting people to act differently. It isn't just another 'winter' virus, it's constantly changing creating waves throughout the year. As I've previously said, it goes far beyond the symptomatic phase and can cause so many other conditions, hiding that from the public is terrible. If I didn't post about these problems, I'm sure most people on here wouldn't know about that.
The lie that Covid is just a cold needs to be stopped and good messaging is key.
People need to know that it is an airborne virus and that if there is an infected person in a setting with poor ventilation, then they can breathe in the virus and become infected themselves. If a building can't be fitted with air cleaning systems, then portable cleaners need to be used, especially in schools. CO2 monitors are a good indication of the cleanliness of the air, the higher the CO2 levels, the poorer the air quality will be. It's interesting to note that new air filtration systems were put in place in the House of Commons & Lords and associated buildings during the early stage of the pandemic. They knew that the Sars Cov-2 virus was airborne.
Making going out when infected needs to be made anti-social. The new Government has made a start in making staying at home if ill possible, by paying statutory sick pay from day one. Make working from home if infectious, the norm.
Make testing for Covid cheaper.
Children shouldn't be sent to school if unwell, an academy group recently told parents that they should send their children to school if unwell, and that they would be looked after by staff away from the classroom if they needed a break. That is madness, and they had to quickly back track due to the outcry.
Putting a stop to the notion that getting infected by any virus is good for your immunity, it isn't and any virus can cause long term sequelae.
Masking in medical settings in particular, so many people go into a hospital and contract Covid whilst they are there.
Better surveillance, most countries were testing waste water long after the UK stopped it.
Greater emphasis on vaccination for all.
The cost to the economy/health of so much sickness is enormous and needs to be addressed.
1.
Ive long thought the battle through it and soldier on attitude by many is a ridiculous and potentially dangerous attitude. You are I believe correct that going out and going to work when full of a cold or other illness should become socially unacceptable. Years.
2.
Exposure to any virus does not necessarily have good outcomes but being exposed to a virus primes the body’s immune system to make antibodies and recognise subsequent infections. Regular exposure keeps the body’s immune system alert to a certain extent. Over many generations we have of course been exposed to common viruses time and time again and have unequivocally developed some immunity. By way of extreme example. The Aztecs were wiped out after being exposed to viruses and germs they had never been exposed to and had no immunity to, brought by European colonisers. 5.8 million people died of smallpox in two decades in the immediate wake of Spanish colonisation. DNA studies have shown that the real suspect for extinction was Salmonella, known to have been in Europe during the Middle Ages and brought to the new world in livestock by the Spanish. Not a virus at all but a bacterium but still deadly to a virgin immune system.
Aren’t these two paragraphs in contradiction to each other? I disagree with the idea in 1 largely due to what is said in 2.
Not sure I see your point although that could be me. I definitely agree that people shouldn’t go to work or socialise if they are ill. That work ethos of soldiering on is ridiculous. The second point doesn’t suggest that people should not worry about passing on their bugs but merely that just by living we come into contact with all sorts of viruses and bacteria. We eventually through such contacts gain to some extent a level of immunity.
My point is that by ’soldiering on’ we then come into contact more, pass ’on their bugs’ and get more immunity. I too find ’soldiering on’ rather silly but the general idea of carrying on without restrictions to freedom does, as in paragraph 2 states, increase immunity.
I think the difference I mean which I’m not explaining very well is that we shouldn’t be exposing others when we are obviously not well and very contagious. That would be irresponsible. We all know somebody who comes into work who is obviously full of a cold and splutters around the place. That’s not acceptable. However, the viruses and bacteria we encounter day to day that live on surfaces or are inhaled from contact with someone who at that point might not be unwell or symptomatic is what provides a build up of immunity. Infections and low level viral load exposure. Of course sitting next to a snot monster who passes onto you their illness will also help your immune exposure but why would anyone think it’s ok to make someone else ill ?
Surely it's better to never become infected in the first place, rather than rely on catching the disease to gain immunity.
Pie in the sky nonsense. Our strength as a species is its ability to live side by side with some quite nasty organisms. Our immune system has developed for a reason.
The thing is, Covid is just like a cold to many people. I think there should be more information on why vaccinations are needed as we are not hearing about deaths anymore. Are all 65 year olds at greater risk or is it more vulnerable ones?
The thing is, Covid is just like a cold to many people. I think there should be more information on why vaccinations are needed as we are not hearing about deaths anymore. Are all 65 year olds at greater risk or is it more vulnerable ones?
Deaths are still occurring but MSM doesn't report it. Since the start of the current year there have been over 7000 deaths from Covid in England alone. Last winter there were more deaths from Covid than flu.
The NHS is warning of a 'tripledemic' this year with Flu, RSV and Covid and many will need hospital treatment at a time when the NHS can least afford it. Infection control is key to reducing infections and we shouldn't be holding up our hands and saying there's nothing we can do to stop it.
I know of many people who have had Covid and it has made them very unwell, it may be just like a cold to some, but to others it still makes them very unwell. My line manager, who is in her 30s, had Covid last week, she actually took time off work which is unusual for her, she would normally just carry on working from home.
I agree we do need more information, unless people are properly informed, they won't take the actions needed to reduce infection.
Up to 30% of people who have Covid are completely asymptomatic and many more experience nothing more severe than a sniffle right up to being quite poorly. Like with any virus that affects the airways some will suffer and need interventions and some will sadly succumb. We can all help protect ourselves from the potential effects but not completely eradicate the risk of becoming ill. Every exposure helps the immune system recognise a more serious infection. We’ve never been able to prevent yearly flu or the numerous colds viruses making us ill and we won’t with Covid either. Wash your hands often, refrain from touching your face as much as possible is pretty much the best we can do even if the authorities sat every one of us down and individually told us all the information. It’s an endemic virus and we must live with it. Life is dangerous. People won’t curtail their life for what is now for most a bad cold no matter how unpleasant. Nor should they.
Up to 30% of people who have Covid are completely asymptomatic and many more experience nothing more severe than a sniffle right up to being quite poorly. Like with any virus that affects the airways some will suffer and need interventions and some will sadly succumb. We can all help protect ourselves from the potential effects but not completely eradicate the risk of becoming ill. Every exposure helps the immune system recognise a more serious infection. We’ve never been able to prevent yearly flu or the numerous colds viruses making us ill and we won’t with Covid either. Wash your hands often, refrain from touching your face as much as possible is pretty much the best we can do even if the authorities sat every one of us down and individually told us all the information. It’s an endemic virus and we must live with it. Life is dangerous. People won’t curtail their life for what is now for most a bad cold no matter how unpleasant. Nor should they.
Are you now saying that washing our hands and refraining from touching our faces is all that we need to do? Yesterday you agreed with me that Covid is an airborne disease and that we should be doing more to clean the air. Washing your hands won't protect you from an airborne disease.
You also agreed that going out whilst infectious is wrong and that people should stay at home, are you now suggesting that they shouldn't curtail their life and it's ok to go out and infect others?
You are ignoring the huge number of studies that point to Covid causing reduced immunity and damage to the whole body. You rightly say that we still don't know enough about the full effects of Covid, it is too new, all the more reason therefore to be honest with the public and stop taking the huge risk that mass infection may cause long term health problems for the world.
I've copied this from the following article which is much longer but discusses endemicity:
The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention’s deputy director for science, Aron Hall, recently told NPR that he considers COVID-19 to be “endemic” throughout the world. Though the exact definition of the word is slippery, “endemicity” generally means a disease has become entrenched and appears with predictable patterns.
Still, experts caution that “endemic” doesn’t mean harmless. William Hanage, an epidemiologist at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, told NPR that “tuberculosis is endemic in some parts of the world. And malaria is endemic in some parts of the world. And neither of those are good things.”
Some experts say that COVID-related deaths are significantly underreported, and despite reports of generally mild cold and flu-like symptoms, COVID infections are still 20 times more lethal than influenza.
We also know that COVID causes immune deregulation, which some experts have pointed to as the reason behind the dramatic global upticks in infectious diseases. Reports are now showing that 400 million people world-wide are afflicted with Long COVID, a debilitating and potentially lifelong, multi-system syndrome that has only 7 per cent of patients reporting a full recovery after two years.
The virus is airborn and spread by aerosol but also survives on surfaces which we all have to touch all of the time. Regular hand washing and refraining from touching your own face is about as much as we can do other than that I wouldnt put in place any other precautions although I do agree air filtration should be standard in public buildings.
The virus is airborn and spread by aerosol but also survives on surfaces which we all have to touch all of the time. Regular hand washing and refraining from touching your own face is about as much as we can do other than that I wouldnt put in place any other precautions although I do agree air filtration should be standard in public buildings.
What about going out when you are infectious? Do you think that is acceptable?
The virus is airborn and spread by aerosol but also survives on surfaces which we all have to touch all of the time. Regular hand washing and refraining from touching your own face is about as much as we can do other than that I wouldnt put in place any other precautions although I do agree air filtration should be standard in public buildings.
What about going out when you are infectious? Do you think that is acceptable?
If you read my earlier posts today you’ll know I’m not. That’s for any illness.
The virus is airborn and spread by aerosol but also survives on surfaces which we all have to touch all of the time. Regular hand washing and refraining from touching your own face is about as much as we can do other than that I wouldnt put in place any other precautions although I do agree air filtration should be standard in public buildings.
What about going out when you are infectious? Do you think that is acceptable?
If you read my earlier posts today you’ll know I’m not. That’s for any illness.
Thanks for clarifying, because your recent post came across that 'washing hands and not touching your face was about as much as we can do'.
The NHS advice on reducing the spread is as follows, but anyone who has listened to the recent module at the Covid Inquiry will know that the main form of transmission of Covid is airborne, not by droplets, and is now the accepted form of transmission by most experts such as Professor Clive Begg.
If you have symptoms of COVID-19 or have tested positive, there are things you can do to help you avoid passing it on to other people, including those you live with:
cover your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze and encourage children to do this
regularly clean surfaces you touch often (such as door handles and remote controls) and in shared spaces, such as kitchens or bathrooms
try to stay away from other people, including those you live with, until you feel better
let people who need to come into your home know that you’ve tested positive or have symptoms
think about asking friends, family or neighbours to get food and other essentials for you
avoid indoor or crowded places (including public transport or large social gatherings) or places where there is not much fresh air if you need to leave your home
wear a face covering when it's hard to stay away from other people
let healthcare professionals know about your positive test result or symptoms if you’re asked to attend an appointment in person
The virus is airborn and spread by aerosol but also survives on surfaces which we all have to touch all of the time. Regular hand washing and refraining from touching your own face is about as much as we can do other than that I wouldnt put in place any other precautions although I do agree air filtration should be standard in public buildings.
What about going out when you are infectious? Do you think that is acceptable?
If you read my earlier posts today you’ll know I’m not. That’s for any illness.
Thanks for clarifying, because your recent post came across that 'washing hands and not touching your face was about as much as we can do'.
The NHS advice on reducing the spread is as follows, but anyone who has listened to the recent module at the Covid Inquiry will know that the main form of transmission of Covid is airborne, not by droplets, and is now the accepted form of transmission by most experts such as Professor Clive Begg.
If you have symptoms of COVID-19 or have tested positive, there are things you can do to help you avoid passing it on to other people, including those you live with:
cover your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze and encourage children to do this
regularly clean surfaces you touch often (such as door handles and remote controls) and in shared spaces, such as kitchens or bathrooms
try to stay away from other people, including those you live with, until you feel better
let people who need to come into your home know that you’ve tested positive or have symptoms
think about asking friends, family or neighbours to get food and other essentials for you
avoid indoor or crowded places (including public transport or large social gatherings) or places where there is not much fresh air if you need to leave your home
wear a face covering when it's hard to stay away from other people
let healthcare professionals know about your positive test result or symptoms if you’re asked to attend an appointment in person
All of that is sensible if you’re not feeling well. Half of it people just won’t do. There’s no engagement with the process now. We have to live in the real world where people are getting on with their lives without giving Covid or Flu or a bad cold a second thought. Harsh reality.
Having mild side effects of flu jab. Fatigue (just went for a nap and woke up 2 hours later). Also feel chilly and achy. I’m wondering ‘why always me?!’ I’ve got an autoimmune disease so maybe my immune system is too busy beating itself up?
The virus is airborn and spread by aerosol but also survives on surfaces which we all have to touch all of the time. Regular hand washing and refraining from touching your own face is about as much as we can do other than that I wouldnt put in place any other precautions although I do agree air filtration should be standard in public buildings.
What about going out when you are infectious? Do you think that is acceptable?
If you read my earlier posts today you’ll know I’m not. That’s for any illness.
Thanks for clarifying, because your recent post came across that 'washing hands and not touching your face was about as much as we can do'.
The NHS advice on reducing the spread is as follows, but anyone who has listened to the recent module at the Covid Inquiry will know that the main form of transmission of Covid is airborne, not by droplets, and is now the accepted form of transmission by most experts such as Professor Clive Begg.
If you have symptoms of COVID-19 or have tested positive, there are things you can do to help you avoid passing it on to other people, including those you live with:
cover your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze and encourage children to do this
regularly clean surfaces you touch often (such as door handles and remote controls) and in shared spaces, such as kitchens or bathrooms
try to stay away from other people, including those you live with, until you feel better
let people who need to come into your home know that you’ve tested positive or have symptoms
think about asking friends, family or neighbours to get food and other essentials for you
avoid indoor or crowded places (including public transport or large social gatherings) or places where there is not much fresh air if you need to leave your home
wear a face covering when it's hard to stay away from other people
let healthcare professionals know about your positive test result or symptoms if you’re asked to attend an appointment in person
All of that is sensible if you’re not feeling well. Half of it people just won’t do. There’s no engagement with the process now. We have to live in the real world where people are getting on with their lives without giving Covid or Flu or a bad cold a second thought. Harsh reality.
If it were true that it is the symptomatic side of Covid infection that is the only downside to having Covid, then I might agree with you, but it isn't. There is already so much evidence of Covid infections making it far more likely that you will develop other, more serious conditions, possibly not straight away for some people, but in the future. Also subjecting children to so much infection is appalling when it might affect their future health.
I get that people don't want to believe that a virus they've been told is just a cold or like flu, will hurt them, but that is because they haven't been informed of what it can do. It's already been shown at the Covid Inquiry that too many people at the top of the decision making, have made wrong calls and are trying to downplay their errors, just as they are in the Post Office Inquiry. Some are still running the NHS and UKHSA.
When the next pandemic hits, controlling the spread will be so much harder because of the poor communication. I have little doubt that in the years to come, we will be having another Inquiry into why those in authority allowed a new virus to cause so much illness.
Up to 30% of people who have Covid are completely asymptomatic and many more experience nothing more severe than a sniffle right up to being quite poorly. Like with any virus that affects the airways some will suffer and need interventions and some will sadly succumb. We can all help protect ourselves from the potential effects but not completely eradicate the risk of becoming ill. Every exposure helps the immune system recognise a more serious infection. We’ve never been able to prevent yearly flu or the numerous colds viruses making us ill and we won’t with Covid either. Wash your hands often, refrain from touching your face as much as possible is pretty much the best we can do even if the authorities sat every one of us down and individually told us all the information. It’s an endemic virus and we must live with it. Life is dangerous. People won’t curtail their life for what is now for most a bad cold no matter how unpleasant. Nor should they.
I'm not at all sure this is the whole truth with COVID There's little to no argument that our immune system only recognises pathogens it has been exposed to - wether by infection, inoculation or inherited antibodies. For most people, their immune system and overall physical robustness enables them to overcome minor infections without help and more major problems with the aid of medication. This appears to be true for many people with the currently prevalent Covid variants. BUT right from the start Covid infection has provided a hitherto unseen litany of complications in a significant minority of cases. From the weird but not life threatening ruination of people's sense of taste, new allergies and intolerances in previously untroubled adults to totally derailed immune systems and life limiting respiratory frailty. I have colleagues and friends whose diets have had to change out of all recognition, one of whom her issues multiplied with each bout of covid, even though the 2nd and 3rd episodes were really minor. 3 years on from infection nothing tastes as it did, much tastes nothing and lots tastes truly foul, well past her 50th birthday she developed a catalogue of food intolerances. A colleague and a friend died from Covid, both in their 50's. That's as many of my peers in 4 years as have died from cancer in 54. My sample may be unrepresentative but is none the less sobering. The argument that "if I pass on my 'cold' to you, you won't be seriously affected" is desperately irresponsible and unforgivably selfish as the consequences of passing on Covid or Influenza can be life changing. Of course we have some responsibility for protecting ourselves as far as we are able but taking potentially serious infections into workplaces and social environments when that can be avoided e.g. by working from home, is reprehensible. If we choose to work on through some sort of respiratory ailment and wear ourselves down until we have pleurisy or similar that's our look out - inflicting that chance on anybody else is heinous.
Comments
To my knowledge I haven't had Covid and can't remember the last time I had a cold, it was well before the pandemic.
The NHS is warning of a 'tripledemic' this year with Flu, RSV and Covid and many will need hospital treatment at a time when the NHS can least afford it. Infection control is key to reducing infections and we shouldn't be holding up our hands and saying there's nothing we can do to stop it.
I know of many people who have had Covid and it has made them very unwell, it may be just like a cold to some, but to others it still makes them very unwell. My line manager, who is in her 30s, had Covid last week, she actually took time off work which is unusual for her, she would normally just carry on working from home.
I agree we do need more information, unless people are properly informed, they won't take the actions needed to reduce infection.
You also agreed that going out whilst infectious is wrong and that people should stay at home, are you now suggesting that they shouldn't curtail their life and it's ok to go out and infect others?
You are ignoring the huge number of studies that point to Covid causing reduced immunity and damage to the whole body. You rightly say that we still don't know enough about the full effects of Covid, it is too new, all the more reason therefore to be honest with the public and stop taking the huge risk that mass infection may cause long term health problems for the world.
I've copied this from the following article which is much longer but discusses endemicity:
The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention’s deputy director for science, Aron Hall, recently told NPR that he considers COVID-19 to be “endemic” throughout the world. Though the exact definition of the word is slippery, “endemicity” generally means a disease has become entrenched and appears with predictable patterns.
Still, experts caution that “endemic” doesn’t mean harmless. William Hanage, an epidemiologist at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, told NPR that “tuberculosis is endemic in some parts of the world. And malaria is endemic in some parts of the world. And neither of those are good things.”
Some experts say that COVID-related deaths are significantly underreported, and despite reports of generally mild cold and flu-like symptoms, COVID infections are still 20 times more lethal than influenza.
We also know that COVID causes immune deregulation, which some experts have pointed to as the reason behind the dramatic global upticks in infectious diseases. Reports are now showing that 400 million people world-wide are afflicted with Long COVID, a debilitating and potentially lifelong, multi-system syndrome that has only 7 per cent of patients reporting a full recovery after two years.
https://healthydebate.ca/2024/09/topic/experts-covid-19-indoors-2024/
The NHS advice on reducing the spread is as follows, but anyone who has listened to the recent module at the Covid Inquiry will know that the main form of transmission of Covid is airborne, not by droplets, and is now the accepted form of transmission by most experts such as Professor Clive Begg.
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/covid-19/how-to-avoid-catching-and-spreading-covid-19/
How to avoid spreading COVID-19
If you have symptoms of COVID-19 or have tested positive, there are things you can do to help you avoid passing it on to other people, including those you live with:
I’m wondering ‘why always me?!’ I’ve got an autoimmune disease so maybe my immune system is too busy beating itself up?
I get that people don't want to believe that a virus they've been told is just a cold or like flu, will hurt them, but that is because they haven't been informed of what it can do. It's already been shown at the Covid Inquiry that too many people at the top of the decision making, have made wrong calls and are trying to downplay their errors, just as they are in the Post Office Inquiry. Some are still running the NHS and UKHSA.
When the next pandemic hits, controlling the spread will be so much harder because of the poor communication. I have little doubt that in the years to come, we will be having another Inquiry into why those in authority allowed a new virus to cause so much illness.
https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2024/10/17/nx-s1-5155104/flu-shot-vaccine-b-yamagata-extinct
Go to work RFK Jr.
Flu jab this morning.
I could have had both together but prefer to have them separately.
No side effects or aches
There's little to no argument that our immune system only recognises pathogens it has been exposed to - wether by infection, inoculation or inherited antibodies.
For most people, their immune system and overall physical robustness enables them to overcome minor infections without help and more major problems with the aid of medication. This appears to be true for many people with the currently prevalent Covid variants.
BUT right from the start Covid infection has provided a hitherto unseen litany of complications in a significant minority of cases. From the weird but not life threatening ruination of people's sense of taste, new allergies and intolerances in previously untroubled adults to totally derailed immune systems and life limiting respiratory frailty.
I have colleagues and friends whose diets have had to change out of all recognition, one of whom her issues multiplied with each bout of covid, even though the 2nd and 3rd episodes were really minor. 3 years on from infection nothing tastes as it did, much tastes nothing and lots tastes truly foul, well past her 50th birthday she developed a catalogue of food intolerances.
A colleague and a friend died from Covid, both in their 50's. That's as many of my peers in 4 years as have died from cancer in 54. My sample may be unrepresentative but is none the less sobering.
The argument that "if I pass on my 'cold' to you, you won't be seriously affected" is desperately irresponsible and unforgivably selfish as the consequences of passing on Covid or Influenza can be life changing.
Of course we have some responsibility for protecting ourselves as far as we are able but taking potentially serious infections into workplaces and social environments when that can be avoided e.g. by working from home, is reprehensible. If we choose to work on through some sort of respiratory ailment and wear ourselves down until we have pleurisy or similar that's our look out - inflicting that chance on anybody else is heinous.