Corona current: doctor warns of rubber gloves

The outbreak of the novel coronavirus Sars-CoV-2 changed everyday life in Germany within a few weeks. The uncertainty surrounding the corona crisis is great, as is the fear of infection. The effects of both factors can be observed during one of the fewer visits to the supermarket: people not only wear mouthguards more and more, but also rubber gloves.

How well a mask can protect and whether there should be a mask requirement, as it already applies in Jena, is currently being discussed in Germany. However, wearing gloves has so far expressly not been part of the safety measures. Do they protect at all? Or can they even harm you? Now a doctor on Twitter has given a clear warning.

Doctor warns: Do not wear gloves!

Stop wearing medical gloves in public. This is a large-scale hygienic mess.

With these words, the discussion that Dr. Marc Hanefeld recently started on Twitter. But the country doctor does not want to give a warning for no reason – in further comments he explains why the gloves cannot necessarily protect against the corona virus:

Medical gloves are porous. And they become even more porous under everyday use.

In the health care system, the gloves are primarily used to deal with larger contaminants from body fluids. However, the material would not protect either the wearer or the patient. On the contrary: In the worst case, the gloves could cause the virus to spread more widely. Because plastic releases more germs into the environment than skin.

There is also an important rule that must also be observed in everyday life: "Hygienic hand disinfection is necessary before and after use". This would make many people wrong, especially in everyday use. The reason for this is a simple one: germs feel particularly good in the warm, damp climate of the gloves.

At the latest after taking off you have a sewer on your hands without disinfection. Congratulations!

That's why Dr. animates Hanefeld in conclusion, but prefer not to wear gloves – unless you want to be "a hygiene pig". After all, we don't all want that right now, do we?

In an interview with BRIGITTE.de, another doctor advised against wearing gloves. Above all, they would signal that you are only thinking about yourself – and other, really important measures could be neglected. Instead, these doctor tips apply to protect yourself from the corona virus when shopping.