Survival Medicine Podcast: Coronavirus Numbers, Pet Exposure

The latest viral epidemic has been given an official new name! Instead of 2019-nCoV, it’s now COVID-19. World Health Organization officials wanted a name that doesn’t refer to a geographical location, animals, an individual or a group of people, so I guess they’ll be changing the name of the Spanish Flu epidemic of 1918 one day in the name of political correctness. That’s ok, since that flu didn’t start in Spain but in Asia. Now you know there’s someone who being paid a salary to come up with catchy names for viral epidemics.

There are currently 60,000 confirmed cases, almost all in China. 60,000 cases, that is, if you believe the Chinese government. It’s obvious that there are several times the amount of cases. Dr. Joe Alton puts the number likely to be well in the hundreds of thousands, and it could end up with millions of people getting sick. Dr. Alton tells you his thoughts in this podcast.

Plus, what about COVID-19 in animals? Theories of viral lab accidents or deliberate release aside, there are coronaviruses that affect dogs, cats, bats, and many other animals, and they're all for sale (for slaughter) in live markets in China. Dr. Alton tells you about the risk to your pets from COVID-19 and other members of the coronavirus family.

All this and more in the latest Survival Medicine Podcast with Joe Alton MD (Nurse Amy is out making personal protection gear kits for her store at store.doomandbloom.net.!