Everyday COVID-19 Mistakes We Are Still Making

You can argue rules are meant to be broken, but when it comes to COVID-19, breaking the rules could mean losing your life or that of someone you love.

Experts say many of us are not intentionally straying from the guidelines governing COVID-19 prevention, but we do not always connect the dots. Here are some common errors that can increase your COVID-19 risk:

• Congregating with one group of people and then visiting another poses an inherent transmission risk. For example, according to The Guardian, young people often mix freely with their peers as they are at low-risk of serious disease, and then go visit their grandparents. Lucy Yardley, a British psychologist, and professor of health psychology at both the University of Bristol and the University of Southampton, said even if the grandchildren are careful with their elders, they still expose them to risk. "People don't understand how this free mixing in one situation passes on," she said.

• Trusting friends who claim they have been careful is another widespread error. According to the Journal of Health Psychology, COVID-19 dishonesty and concealment of behavior is common. Researchers found 25% of American adults lied about their social or physical distancing practices, and among those who contracted COVID-19, 34% said they denied having symptoms when asked by others.

• Failure to understand the disease can be airborne. According to The Guardian, if you stand next to someone who has COVID-19 long enough, you can inhale the virus and become infected. Ongoing research has proven the main source of transmission of COVID-19 is airborne, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The key to reducing the risk of airborne transition is ventilation, say experts, adding it is not enough just to open a window. You need to circulate the air.

• Believing COVID-19 precautions are "all or nothing" contradicts the evidence. Professor Yardley has a website called Germ Defense that offer practical tips on reducing transmission. "Every little bit you can do, can and will help," she says.

• Wearing Inadequate face coverings. While experts say keeping your distance from others is the best precaution against contracting COVID-19, masks are essential in any situation where you find yourself in proximity with others. With the new highly contagious variants of the virus plaguing the country, experts recommend upgrading your face mask. According to The Washington Post, this means doubling up or donning a surgical mask over your cloth mask to get better protection. Experts also suggest buying the highly effective N95 and KN95 masks.

• Believing getting vaccinated means you are COVID-19 clear. According to CNN, you still need to wear masks and socially distance. Masks will continue to be crucial tools in the fight against COVID-19, even as shots go into arms. Dr. Sandro Cinti, an infectious disease specialist and medical professor at the University of Michigan, said masks are required because it is possible vaccinated individuals could still pick up the virus. While it might not make them sick, they could still spread it to someone else through a cough or sneeze. Also, the vaccines are not 100% effective, so there is a small margin of people who can still get sick even after they have had their shots.

And, according to The Guardian, do not make the mistake of thinking if you have had COVID-19, you cannot catch it again. There have been isolated reports of reinfection, so do not let down your guard.