* . *
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact
Saturday, October 18, 2025
Earth-News
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    Elmira’s New Entertainment Venue ‘Centertown Social’ Adding its Final Touches – WENY News

    Elmira’s New Entertainment Venue ‘Centertown Social’ Adding its Final Touches – WENY News

    Bella Thorne Shows Off Her Toned Abs in Crop Top – Yahoo

    Bella Thorne Shows Off Her Toned Abs in a Chic Crop Top

    Bricktown continues to thrive as OKC’s entertainment district – OKC VeloCity

    Bricktown Shines as Oklahoma City’s Premier Entertainment Hotspot

    This Haunting ‘60s Country Song Is Even More Tragic Than You Remember – Yahoo

    This Haunting ’60s Country Song Will Break Your Heart All Over Again

    Arts/Entertainment: ‘Wait Until Dark’ brings spooky season center stage – Times Herald Online

    Wait Until Dark’ Delivers Chilling Thrills Perfect for the Spooky Season

    Bluesman James Montgomery Will Perform In Falmouth – CapeNews.net

    Blues Legend James Montgomery Ready to Ignite the Stage in Falmouth

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    Guide to Proteomics Project Planning: Sample Preparation Strategies – Technology Networks

    Guide to Proteomics Project Planning: Sample Preparation Strategies – Technology Networks

    DLG−Agrifuture Concept Winners 2025 announced – Visionary Ideas in agricultural technology recognized – TheNewsMarket

    Meet the Visionary Innovators Revolutionizing Agricultural Technology in 2025

    Spanning the Gulf: Global Defence Technology 155 – Army Technology

    Spanning the Gulf: Exploring Cutting-Edge Global Defence Technology

    A Nobel Prize for explaining when technology leads to growth – NPR

    Nobel Prize Awarded for Unraveling How Technology Drives Economic Growth

    Erie Canal’s 200th anniversary: How a technological marvel for trade changed the environment forever – The Conversation

    Erie Canal’s 200th Anniversary: How a Trade Marvel Transformed the Environment Forever

    Day 5 of Gains Streak for Solidion Technology Stock with 475% Return (vs. -20% YTD) [10/14/2025] – Trefis

    Solidion Technology Stock Rockets for 5th Consecutive Day, Soaring an Astonishing 475% Year-to-Date

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    Elmira’s New Entertainment Venue ‘Centertown Social’ Adding its Final Touches – WENY News

    Elmira’s New Entertainment Venue ‘Centertown Social’ Adding its Final Touches – WENY News

    Bella Thorne Shows Off Her Toned Abs in Crop Top – Yahoo

    Bella Thorne Shows Off Her Toned Abs in a Chic Crop Top

    Bricktown continues to thrive as OKC’s entertainment district – OKC VeloCity

    Bricktown Shines as Oklahoma City’s Premier Entertainment Hotspot

    This Haunting ‘60s Country Song Is Even More Tragic Than You Remember – Yahoo

    This Haunting ’60s Country Song Will Break Your Heart All Over Again

    Arts/Entertainment: ‘Wait Until Dark’ brings spooky season center stage – Times Herald Online

    Wait Until Dark’ Delivers Chilling Thrills Perfect for the Spooky Season

    Bluesman James Montgomery Will Perform In Falmouth – CapeNews.net

    Blues Legend James Montgomery Ready to Ignite the Stage in Falmouth

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    Guide to Proteomics Project Planning: Sample Preparation Strategies – Technology Networks

    Guide to Proteomics Project Planning: Sample Preparation Strategies – Technology Networks

    DLG−Agrifuture Concept Winners 2025 announced – Visionary Ideas in agricultural technology recognized – TheNewsMarket

    Meet the Visionary Innovators Revolutionizing Agricultural Technology in 2025

    Spanning the Gulf: Global Defence Technology 155 – Army Technology

    Spanning the Gulf: Exploring Cutting-Edge Global Defence Technology

    A Nobel Prize for explaining when technology leads to growth – NPR

    Nobel Prize Awarded for Unraveling How Technology Drives Economic Growth

    Erie Canal’s 200th anniversary: How a technological marvel for trade changed the environment forever – The Conversation

    Erie Canal’s 200th Anniversary: How a Trade Marvel Transformed the Environment Forever

    Day 5 of Gains Streak for Solidion Technology Stock with 475% Return (vs. -20% YTD) [10/14/2025] – Trefis

    Solidion Technology Stock Rockets for 5th Consecutive Day, Soaring an Astonishing 475% Year-to-Date

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
Earth-News
No Result
View All Result
Home Health

Nose-Picking Health Workers Had Higher COVID Risk

August 3, 2023
in Health
Nose-Picking Health Workers Had Higher COVID Risk
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Surveyed hospital workers who admitted to picking their nose were three to four times more likely to wind up having a COVID infection, and the prevalent habit may be an underrecognized source of spread, Dutch researchers suggested.

Early on in the pandemic, COVID incidence was significantly greater among respondents who reported picking their nose at least incidentally, and with some degree of regularity, compared with those who refrained at all costs (17.3% vs 5.9%; adjusted OR 3.80, 95% CI 1.05-24.52), reported Jonne Sikkens, MD, MSc, of Amsterdam Institute for Infection and Immunity in the Netherlands, and colleagues.

Writing in PLoS ONE, they suggested that “perhaps the role of nose picking is underestimated” when it comes to SARS-CoV-2 transmission among hospital staff.

“The viral load in the nasal mucosa is high in the days after contracting a SARS-CoV-2 infection, even before the onset of symptoms and in patients that remain asymptomatic,” they noted. “Nose picking HCW [healthcare workers] who are infected with SARS-CoV-2 could contaminate the work environment, potentially leading to further transmission.”

Workers at Amsterdam University Medical Centers were retrospectively surveyed in December 2021 about their behaviors during the first and second waves of the pandemic, with 85% of the Dutch cohort owning up to picking their nose either daily, weekly, or monthly. Responses were matched against prospectively collected SARS-CoV-2 test results at the hospitals from March through October 2020.

A noted limitation of the study was that “the depth of penetration and eating of boogers” among the nose pickers was not evaluated, said Sikkens and colleagues.

Nose pickers tended to be younger (mean age 44 vs 53 years for non-pickers) and were more likely to be men (90% vs 83%), with doctors being the worst offenders.

While COVID prevention guidelines suggest personal protective equipment (PPE) for workers dealing with patients and offer strict hand hygiene protocols, nose-picking doesn’t make the cut. But it should, said Sikkens and co-authors.

“Nose picking deserves more consideration as a potential health hazard, and explicit recommendations against nose picking should be included in the same SARS-CoV-2 infection prevention guidelines,” they wrote.

The findings, said Sikkens and colleagues, highlight how critical the nasal cavity is when it comes to SARS-CoV-2 transmission, as “nose picking may facilitate viral entry by directly introducing virus particles present on the hands to the nose, thus facilitating infection.”

Researchers also examined other behavioral habits like nail biting, wearing glasses, and having a beard, with adjustments for all made for COVID exposure, though none of these were associated with an increased risk of infection.

Concern around glasses and beards involves the potential for less-than-ideal fitting PPE, though glasses, if anything, seemed potentially protective in the study (OR 0.49, 95% CI 0.23-1.06); prior studies have shown conflicting results as to whether eyewear confers protection against infection.

Given the study timeframe and the rash of COVID preprints unleashed during the pandemic, why did researchers only now release these findings? In part because the cohort evaluated yielded large amounts of data and priorities needed to be made, Sikkens told MedPage Today.

“We did prioritize the analyses based on research subjects that were thought to be most urgent, leading to our earlier publications for instance on vaccine response and infections in healthcare workers,” he said by email. “The current data would have been useful to have earlier in the pandemic, but others were thought to be even more important.”

For their study, the team sent out surveys to 404 healthcare workers at the Amsterdam University Medical Centers in December 2021, with 52% of the workers responding.

Of the 219 respondents, three-fourths were women. Most respondents were nurses (45%) or support staff (35%), with doctors (15% specialists, 5% residents) rounding out the rest of the cohort. Residents and specialists (100% and 91%, respectively) were the most frequent nose pickers, followed by support staff (86%) and nurses (80%).

Frequency of nose picking did not appear to be linked with any difference in COVID infection risk, with positive cases in 27% of those who reported monthly picking, 35% among weekly pickers, and 32% of daily pickers. No participants reported picking their nose every hour, thankfully.

One-third of the cohort reported nail biting, two-thirds wore glasses, and 31% of the men had beards.

A study strength was that SARS-CoV-2 positivity was determined by prospective longitudinal serological sampling, though this was all done pre-Omicron and pre-vaccine availability and therefore might not be generalizable to the current circulating variants or to the vaccine era. Another limitation involved the survey timing — as it was conducted retrospectively, it may have introduced recall bias.

author['full_name']

Ian Ingram is Managing Editor at MedPage Today and helps cover oncology for the site.

Disclosures

The study was funded by the Netherlands Organization for Health Research and Development ZonMw and the Corona Research Fund Amsterdam UMC.

Sikkens and co-authors declared having no competing interests.

Primary Source

PLoS ONE

Source Reference: Lavell AHA, et al “Why not to pick your nose: Association between nose picking and SARS-CoV-2 incidence, a cohort study in hospital health care workers” PLoS ONE 2023; DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0288352.

>>> Read full article>>>
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source : MedPageToday – https://www.medpagetoday.com/infectiousdisease/covid19/105754

Tags: healthNose-Picking
Previous Post

No Weight Benefits With Phone-Based CBT a Year After Bariatric Surgery

Next Post

Outdoor air pollution may increase non-lung cancer risk in older adults

Harnessing the Full Potential of Large-Scale Diversification Dynamics

October 18, 2025
Georgia Southern to offer new Ph.D. in biomedical sciences – Statesboro Herald

Georgia Southern Unveils Groundbreaking New Ph.D. Program in Biomedical Sciences

October 18, 2025

Millburn Dominates Science Park in Exciting ECT Prelims Girls Soccer Clash

October 18, 2025
Cheetos Expected to Expand Flamin’ Hot Lineup With ‘Heavenly’ New Addition – Yahoo

Cheetos Expected to Expand Flamin’ Hot Lineup With ‘Heavenly’ New Addition – Yahoo

October 18, 2025
Guide to Proteomics Project Planning: Sample Preparation Strategies – Technology Networks

Guide to Proteomics Project Planning: Sample Preparation Strategies – Technology Networks

October 18, 2025
Alabama State Rallies Past Alabama A&M in Five-Set Thriller – Alabama State University Athletics

Alabama State Rallies Past Alabama A&M in Five-Set Thriller – Alabama State University Athletics

October 18, 2025
Iran Extends Internet Clampdown Beyond Wartime – The New York Times

Iran Intensifies Internet Crackdown, Extending Restrictions Well Beyond Wartime

October 17, 2025
US aims to raise $20bn ‘facility’ to support Argentina’s struggling economy – Al Jazeera

US Unveils $20 Billion Aid Package to Revitalize Argentina’s Economy

October 17, 2025
Elmira’s New Entertainment Venue ‘Centertown Social’ Adding its Final Touches – WENY News

Elmira’s New Entertainment Venue ‘Centertown Social’ Adding its Final Touches – WENY News

October 17, 2025
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) tied to heart problems – Harvard Health

New Study Reveals Surprising Connection Between RSV and Heart Complications

October 17, 2025

Categories

Archives

October 2025
M T W T F S S
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
2728293031  
« Sep    
Earth-News.info

The Earth News is an independent English-language daily published Website from all around the World News

Browse by Category

  • Business (20,132)
  • Ecology (873)
  • Economy (894)
  • Entertainment (21,766)
  • General (17,658)
  • Health (9,935)
  • Lifestyle (907)
  • News (22,149)
  • People (895)
  • Politics (904)
  • Science (16,105)
  • Sports (21,394)
  • Technology (15,874)
  • World (877)

Recent News

Harnessing the Full Potential of Large-Scale Diversification Dynamics

October 18, 2025
Georgia Southern to offer new Ph.D. in biomedical sciences – Statesboro Herald

Georgia Southern Unveils Groundbreaking New Ph.D. Program in Biomedical Sciences

October 18, 2025
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

Go to mobile version