The coronavirus has sent panic around many parts of the globe, and people are seemingly doing anything and everything they can to protect themselves from COVID-19.
Unfortunately, not all of the advice available online is from reputable sources, and now condoms are selling out as people are reportedly using them as a barrier method against the virus.
In the video below, a doctor answers common questions about coronavirus:Per the Daily Mail, the problem was brought to light on the Facebook group Ryde District Mums by Thanh Thai, from Sydney, who shared a picture of an empty Durex stand.
Alongside the picture, she wrote: "Can anybody please tell me what happened?"
The Mirror reports how one "method" people are allegedly adopting sees them panic-buying packets of condoms and wearing them on their fingers to protect against the virus when pushing elevator buttons in buildings.
One Facebook user replied to the thread saying: "There has been some stupid post telling people to put condoms on their fingers to press buttons, etc."
"Perhaps a new marketing ploy, just use your clothed elbow to avoid more rubbish being placed in the environments," a second user added.
"Beyond ridiculous,'' wrote a third.
A Wuhan medic cries because of the stress of the epidemic:However, it's not just condoms that are selling out around the world as people try to protect themselves from the virus. There is now a shortage of surgical masks, so much so that one surgeon has urged people to stop buying them.
In addition to this, there is a fear that there could be a global toilet roll shortage as people panic buy out of fear that they will have to self isolate.
At the time of writing, per the World Health Organisation live dashboard, there have been 93,094 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 3,219 deaths across 77 countries.
If you would like information about the best practices to protect yourself from the virus, it should be obtained from a reputable source like the WHO, who have issued the following advice for the public.