If you caught COVID-19, you likely ate at a restaurant, CDC report finds
A new report by the CDC has linked COVID-19 cases to dining at restaurants.
In a month-long investigation completed in July, the CDC analyzed symptomatic outpatients from 11 U.S. health care facilities and found that adults who became infected with COVID-19 had reported dining at indoor or outdoor restaurants two weeks before getting sick.
“Adults with positive SARS-CoV-2 test results were approximately twice as likely to have reported dining at a restaurant than were those with negative SARS-CoV-2 test results,” the CDC wrote.
For the study, 154 symptomatic adults formed the case-patients and had tested positive for COVID-19. They were then compared to control participants, which included 160 adults who were symptomatic outpatients from the same health care facilities with negative test results.
According to the report, there weren’t significant differences observed between the groups when it came to participating in activities that didn’t include going to a restaurant. They included: retail shopping, gyms, salons, using public transportation, gatherings of 10 or less in a home, going to an office setting, or going to a bar or coffee shop.
So, why the discrepancy? The big culprit was the use of masks.
“Exposures and activities where mask use and social distancing are difficult to maintain, including going to places that offer on-site eating or drinking, might be important risk factors for acquiring COVID-19,” the CDC wrote. “Masks cannot be effectively worn while eating and drinking, whereas shopping and numerous other indoor activities do not preclude mask use.”
The CDC added that reports of exposure in restaurants have been linked to poor air circulation where direction, ventilation and intensity of airflow might affect the transmission of the virus, even if restaurants are following guidelines.
“As communities reopen, efforts to reduce possible exposures at locations that offer on-site eating and drinking options should be considered to protect customers, employees, and communities.”
In San Francisco, restaurant patrons are required to wear face masks whenever they wait to be seated, leave the table or when a server takes their order. Masks are not required only when eating or drinking. But even as restaurateurs have adapted to the new normal, regulating mask usage is a complicated dance between being hospitable and following safety rules.
"There’s not enough money to have five extra staff just lifeguarding everybody to have a mask on between every bite," Ben Bleiman of Tonic Nightlife Group and the San Francisco Entertainment Commission told SFGATE last month. "We’re not kindergarten teachers. We’re really good at making people follow the rules, but asking somebody to do something seven times is really hard when it doesn’t rise to an egregious error."
https://www.sfgate.com/food/article/If-you-caught-COVID-19-you-likely-ate-at-a-15560086.php
Anon's question from the linked CDC report (https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6936a5.htm): Why would Zhanar Haimovich, Northrop Grumman be acknowledged?
Also:
All authors have completed and submitted the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors form for disclosure of potential conflicts of interest. Carlos G. Grijalva reports grants from Campbell Alliance, the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality and Sanofi-Pasteur, and consultation fees from Pfizer, Merck, and Sanofi-Pasteur. Christopher J. Lindsell reports grants from National Institutes of Health and the Department of Defense and other support from Marcus Foundation, Endpoint Health, Entegrion, bioMerieux, and Bioscape Digital, outside the submitted work. Nathan I. Shapiro reports grants from the National Institutes of Health, Rapid Pathogen Screening, Inflammatix, and Baxter, outside the submitted work. Daniel J. Henning reports personal fees from CytoVale and grants from Baxter, outside the submitted work. Samuel M. Brown reports grants from National Institutes of Health, Department of Defense, Intermountain Research and Medical Foundation, and Janssen and consulting fees paid to his employer from Faron and Sedana, outside the submitted work. Ithan D. Peltan reports grants from the National Institutes of Health, Asahi Kasei Pharma, Immunexpress Inc., Janssen Pharmaceuticals, and Regeneron, outside the submitted work. Todd W. Rice reports personal fees from Cumberland Pharmaceuticals, Inc, Cytovale, Inc, and Avisa, LLC, outside the submitted work. Adit A. Ginde reports grants from the National Institutes of Health and Department of Defense, outside the submitted work. H. Keipp Talbot reports serving on the Data Safety Monitoring Board for Seqirus. No other potential conflicts of interest were disclosed.