EVENT:
1) If you have been disappointed or frustrated with media coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and other infectious disease outbreaks, check out this 7pm Eastern event tonight (Tuesday, 10/18/22) that I will host, “Why do we keep blowing it? Covid, monkeypox and the next pandemic.” Two stellar experts are set to discuss this topic and envision solutions with me – Katherine J. Wu (a PhD microbiologist and science writer) of the Atlantic and Dr. Jay K. Varma of Weill Cornell Medical College (who was the chief health adviser to the New York City mayor between 2020 and 2021). You can livestream tonight’s event from this link and ask questions using the #kavliconvo hashtag on Twitter, or attend in person at New York University. Just make sure to bring proof of Covid vaccination and a photo ID): https://journalism.nyu.edu/graduate/programs/science-health-and-environmental-reporting/kavli-conversations-on-science-communication/.
Here are some of the smart stories and essays by Katherine J. Wu and Dr. Jay K. Varma that I might bring up during the event, if you wish to read ahead:
Varma:
“5 skills public health officials need to combat the next pandemic” (12/2/21): https://hbr.org/2021/12/5-skills-public-health-officials-need-to-combat-the-next-pandemic
“Not every question has a scientific answer” (9/21/21): https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/09/following-the-science-democracy-experts-covid-19/620138/
“How public health failed America” (5/15/22): https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/05/how-public-health-failed-america/629869/
Wu:
“America’s flu-shot problem is also its next COVID-shot problem” (3/18/22): https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2022/03/flu-shot-covid-vaccine-mandates/627104/
“A risky monkeypox vaccine is looking better all the time” (8/24/22): https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2022/08/monkeypox-vaccine-jynneos-intradermal-injection-acam2000/671220/
“A negative COVID test has never been so meaningless” (6/10/22): https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2022/06/is-my-negative-covid-test-accurate/661242/
LONG COVID:
2) For many people, especially younger people with strong immune systems, a primary concern during the pandemic has been the risk not so much of COVID-19 but of potential subsequent Long Covid – symptoms of COVID-19 that persist months sometimes beyond one’s initial infection. Brittany Trang at STAT recently covered a study concluding that pre-infection stress, anxiety, loneliness, worry about COVID-19, and depression are more strongly associated with one’s risk of Long Covid than underlying conditions (9/7/22). The study does not demonstrate that these mental conditions cause CoVID-19, but I am taking it as yet another reminder to seek ways to reduce stress and obtain mental-health care. Easier said than done: https://www.statnews.com/2022/09/07/stress-depression-better-long-covid-indicators-than-physical-comorbidities-study/.
3) James Fallows, a contributing writer and former national correspondent with The Atlantic (wow, today’s newsletter is unintentionally Atlantic-heavy), has published at his newsletter a first-person essay about his experience with Long Covid (10/13/22). He wrote the piece in hopes that it will help validate the experiences of others with the condition. His first inklings of Long Covid manifested in the words, “I don’t feel good.” The piece includes a list of Long Covid symptoms, including some of his other symptoms, such as extreme fatigue, dizziness, shortness of breath, heart palpitations, and pins and needles. I would be wary, however, of a suggestion lower in the piece that taking Vitamin B12 can resolve Long Covid:
ENTERTAINMENT/INFO:
4) This new book looks interesting: https://thenapministry.com/.
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TAG ME: Please reply to this email to send feedback and/or good SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19 science coverage that you’ve read, written, or produced in English, Spanish, French, etc.
Love/In friendship, Robin