A surgeon has taken to TikTok to explain why wearing gloves to the supermarket is a bad idea.
In a now-viral video, Dr. Rangarajan of the National Health Service (NHS) explains that you could be doing more harm than good if you wear gloves in a bid to protect yourself from COVID-19 at the supermarket.
This comes as a number of studies have shown that the virus can live on surfaces for days, per the Guardian.
This doctor ignited Twitter after dropping truth bombs about the virus on TV:"You've got your gloves, you're at the supermarket, you're touching things ... there you go - germs," Dr. Rangarajan says in the TikTok video.
"You keep touching more things throughout same day with these same gloves? Germs everywhere. You're accumulating germs. Your glove is now more full of germs than your hand would've been if you washed it each time."
Dr. Rangarajan continued: "Remember, with these same gloves, you’ll be touching your steering wheel … you might accidentally touch your face, transferring the germs to yourself.''
"And then when you’re changing the gloves, you might actually be touching the glove itself. Just wash your hands, be sensible, stay safe."
Dr. Rangarajan, however, is not the only professional to agree that wearing gloves is a bad idea. Australian virologist Ian Mackay took to Twitter to explain that there are widespread misconceptions about the amount of protection that can be obtained by wearing a mask or gloves.
"If you wear latex/vinyl gloves while out, realize you have added a surface on which virus is likely to last for *longer* than on your hands (perhaps only 30 minutes at most)," Dr. Mackay wrote.
"And as with any PPE (personal protective equipment), you choose to wear - be it masks or gloves or Tyvek suits - dispose of them carefully *into* a rubbish bin. Don't leave them lying around for others to come into contact with, therefore putting *them* at risk. Then immediately sanitize your hands."
These are the CDC recommended steps that you should follow if you think you've contracted coronavirus.
At the time of writing, there have been 1,289,380 cases of the novel coronavirus and it has claimed 70,590 lives globally, per the John Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center.
