Mainly I want to make it easier to track when I retracted or modified something potentially decision-relevant. If something was deleted, I both note when that happened and (so people don’t miss it) italicize all mentions below and put the original addition in angle brackets < >.
Feb. 27 — First deprecated post. Added: stocking up on supplies like 2+ weeks of food and water, surgical masks, and personal medications; printing out health records; washing hands more often, <for 20 seconds>, using medical protocol; avoiding touching eyes, nose, or mouth; not adjusting mask while wearing it; <never re-using masks>; going to the hospital only if really necessary; <signing up for cryonics> [but I do recommend this for many people]; <informing friends and family and making sure everyone can contact someone if they need help> [but I do recommend this]; minimizing exposure to crowded places and places like offices and grocery stores; using pedialyte powder, acetaminophen, <aspirin>, over-the-counter inhalers if you get sick; using finger pulse oximeter and going to hospital <if it gives a number below 92% at sea level>; using thermometer <as an earlier warning sign than the oximeter>; <worrying a lot about overwhelmed hospitals in the US>
Deleted: washing hands for 20 seconds
Mar. 15 — Second deprecated post. Added: Americans who haven’t self-quarantined doing so ASAP; trying to minimize initial viral load if exposed; being wary of transmission even from people who aren’t showing symptoms; being wary of people coughing, sneezing, talking<, or breathing>; <being wary of people ≤ 6 feet away> [but I do recommend this]; being wary of indoor interactions; wearing home-made masks or scarves if you don’t have surgical masks; <using sleeve instead of hand if your eye itches>; <carrying a handkerchief for touching your nose or mouth without using your hands>; minimizing exposure to surfaces lots of people touch; not using hand sanitizer as a substitute for hand-washing; stocking up on 1+ months of non-perishable food; probably sanitizing package (with sunlight, 70% isopropyl alcohol, or many household cleaners) if it’s easy or if you’re unusually at risk; copper-taping commonly touched surfaces; <not using NSAIDs>; supplementing Vitamin D; eating well, sleeping well, exercising; using zinc if you may be getting sick; maybe aquiring chloroquine, though this is more speculative and risky and you should be sure to read https://docs.google.com/document/d/160RKDODAa-MTORfAqbuc25V8WDkLjqj4itMDyzBTpcc/edit; <noting average time from infection to symptom onset is 5 days>; short symptom overview; treating fever with fluids, baths (but not ice bath or cold bath), cool washcloths under armpits and in the groin area (not icepacks); going to hospital if finger pulse oximeter repeatedly gives numbers below ~90-94% at sea level
Deleted: using aspirin if you get sick; going to hospital if finger pulse oximeter gives a number below 92% at sea level; signing up for cryonics [but I do recommend this for many people]; informing friends and family and making sure everyone can contact someone if they need help [but I do recommend this]
Deleted but then re-added later: stocking up on water
Mar. 16 — Added: <not buying medical-grade masks since health care providers need as many as possible>
Deleted but then re-added later: buying medical-grade masks
Mar. 20 — Added: using mucinex and humidifier if you get sick
Mar. 28 — Google Doc and partial LessWrong mirror. Added: wearing face coverings in general; sanitizing face coverings as an alternative to throwing them away; disinfecting surfaces you touch a lot; running an air filter; <running an air purifier>; <quitting smoking> [but I do recommend this]; taking pseudoephedrine for sinus pressure; using oral thermometers (rather than skin-surface thermometers); maybe considering hydroxychloroquine as an alternative to chloroquine (but read https://docs.google.com/document/d/160RKDODAa-MTORfAqbuc25V8WDkLjqj4itMDyzBTpcc/edit first); maybe getting a home oxygen concentrator; testing thermometer and oximeter while healthy to get baseline numbers; figuring out who can help take care of you if you get sick; detailed symptom overviews; <using trouble breathing as an early warning sign for hypoxia>; <targeting ~94-96% PaO2 if using home oxygen concentrator>; being ready to go to hospital on very short notice, even if first-week symptoms seem mild; talking to a doctor over phone/video first; taking things to soothe throat and prevent coughing if sick; not trying to lower your fever unless it gets to 103°F or higher; considering postural drainage for severe symptoms; if sick and in an at-risk group, considering signing up for nearby clinical trials
Deleted: being wary of people breathing; never re-using masks
Mar. 31 — Added: lying on your front if you get sick
Deleted: using sleeve instead of hand if your eye itches; carrying a handkerchief for touching your nose or mouth without using your hands
Apr. 1 — Added: using UVC light to disinfect surfaces
Deleted: running an air purifier
Apr. 5 — Added: noting average time from infection to symptom onset is 7 days
Deleted: noting average time from infection to symptom onset is 5 days
Apr. 26 — Added: tips for homemade masks; stocking up on 1+ months of water; watching out for (possibly unconscious) unusually fast and deep breathing as an extremely serious warning COVID-19 sign, even if not accompanied by discomfort or other symptoms; using oximeter every few days even if you feel fine; using oximeter a lot and otherwise monitoring symptoms carefully if might have recently been exposed, or if you start showing lower oximeter readings, other “silent hypoxia” signs, or cold/flu symptoms, rather than relying on fever as the first warning sign
Deleted: using thermometer as an earlier warning sign than the oximeter; using trouble breathing as an early warning sign for hypoxia
Apr. 27 — Added: <keeping Vitamin K intake low/moderate>; avoiding motorcycle races and reproduction; watching for signs of heart attack, stroke, or pulmonary embolism even if you have no other symptoms and no known risk factors; <taking aspirin prophylactically if you get sick or may get sick soon>; maybe using home coagulation tests if sick
Apr. 29 — Added: noting Haagen Dasz refreezes better than other ice cream brands
May 3 —
Deleted: taking aspirin prophylactically if you get sick or may get sick soon
May 8 — Added: noting Erin Bromage’s “Successful Infection = Exposure to Virus x Time” guidelines; avoiding public restrooms; avoiding rooms where someone might have recently coughed, sneezed, or yelled
May 10 —
Deleted: worrying a lot about overwhelmed hospitals in the US
May 12 — Added: noting other forms of oxygen supplementation may be much better than invasive mechanical ventilation
Deleted: targeting ~94-96% PaO2 if using home oxygen concentrator
Jun. 2 — Added: focusing more on large-droplet transmission, less on aerosol or surface transmission; avoiding talking in public; being quiet and aiming down if forced to talk in public; avoiding facing nearby people in public; relying on physical models rather than the “6-Foot Rule”; prioritizing small reductions to larger risks over large reductions to very small risks; meal delivery being much safer than going grocery shopping; disinfecting delivered meals
Deleted: being wary of people ≤ 6 feet away [but I do recommend this]; not buying medical-grade masks since health care providers need as many as possible; not using NSAIDs; quitting smoking [but I do recommend this]
FYI, you’re simultaneously proposing very high doses of Vitamin D, and keeping vitamin K intake low (section 2L). I’ve mostly read recommendations to take both together.
> SUMMARY: Scientists don’t know whether high vitamin D intake is harmful when vitamin K intake is inadequate. Evidence suggests it might be a concern, but a definite conclusion cannot be reached at this point.
Of course, Covid may not care about this, and I don’t know how to quantify the relative risks, but they should probably be acknowledged.
In response to this, I’ve deleted the section on Vitamin K, which was already really speculative. The deleted section is copied below:
Per 3G below, COVID-19 seems to be causing blood clots in many people. Vitamin K apparently has a large pro-clotting effect, so I recommend reducing intake of foods rich in vitamin K now, and cutting them out altogether for a few weeks if you think you may have recently contracted COVID-19. Cleveland Clinic says high-vitamin-K foods include:
Other vegetables are generally fine and great.
Eating healthy, exercising regularly, avoiding smoking, etc. also normally reduces clotting risk. (But excessive clotting caused by COVID-19 may not work like normal: the Washington Post says COVID-19 is causing strokes in young people “mostly without risk factors”, and CNN suggests they often have “no past medical history” and have mild or otherwise-asymptomatic cases of COVID-19, all of which suggest the clotting issues may be disproportionately affecting healthy people, even as COVID-19′s more typical symptoms disproportionately affect less healthy people.)
Summary of changes, focusing on sections 2-3.
Mainly I want to make it easier to track when I retracted or modified something potentially decision-relevant. If something was deleted, I both note when that happened and (so people don’t miss it) italicize all mentions below and put the original addition in angle brackets < >.
Feb. 27 — First deprecated post. Added: stocking up on supplies like 2+ weeks of food and water, surgical masks, and personal medications; printing out health records; washing hands more often, <for 20 seconds>, using medical protocol; avoiding touching eyes, nose, or mouth; not adjusting mask while wearing it; <never re-using masks>; going to the hospital only if really necessary; <signing up for cryonics> [but I do recommend this for many people]; <informing friends and family and making sure everyone can contact someone if they need help> [but I do recommend this]; minimizing exposure to crowded places and places like offices and grocery stores; using pedialyte powder, acetaminophen, <aspirin>, over-the-counter inhalers if you get sick; using finger pulse oximeter and going to hospital <if it gives a number below 92% at sea level>; using thermometer <as an earlier warning sign than the oximeter>; <worrying a lot about overwhelmed hospitals in the US>
Deleted: washing hands for 20 seconds
Mar. 15 — Second deprecated post. Added: Americans who haven’t self-quarantined doing so ASAP; trying to minimize initial viral load if exposed; being wary of transmission even from people who aren’t showing symptoms; being wary of people coughing, sneezing, talking<, or breathing>; <being wary of people ≤ 6 feet away> [but I do recommend this]; being wary of indoor interactions; wearing home-made masks or scarves if you don’t have surgical masks; <using sleeve instead of hand if your eye itches>; <carrying a handkerchief for touching your nose or mouth without using your hands>; minimizing exposure to surfaces lots of people touch; not using hand sanitizer as a substitute for hand-washing; stocking up on 1+ months of non-perishable food; probably sanitizing package (with sunlight, 70% isopropyl alcohol, or many household cleaners) if it’s easy or if you’re unusually at risk; copper-taping commonly touched surfaces; <not using NSAIDs>; supplementing Vitamin D; eating well, sleeping well, exercising; using zinc if you may be getting sick; maybe aquiring chloroquine, though this is more speculative and risky and you should be sure to read https://docs.google.com/document/d/160RKDODAa-MTORfAqbuc25V8WDkLjqj4itMDyzBTpcc/edit; <noting average time from infection to symptom onset is 5 days>; short symptom overview; treating fever with fluids, baths (but not ice bath or cold bath), cool washcloths under armpits and in the groin area (not icepacks); going to hospital if finger pulse oximeter repeatedly gives numbers below ~90-94% at sea level
Deleted: using aspirin if you get sick; going to hospital if finger pulse oximeter gives a number below 92% at sea level; signing up for cryonics [but I do recommend this for many people]; informing friends and family and making sure everyone can contact someone if they need help [but I do recommend this]
Deleted but then re-added later: stocking up on water
Mar. 16 — Added: <not buying medical-grade masks since health care providers need as many as possible>
Deleted but then re-added later: buying medical-grade masks
Mar. 20 — Added: using mucinex and humidifier if you get sick
Mar. 28 — Google Doc and partial LessWrong mirror. Added: wearing face coverings in general; sanitizing face coverings as an alternative to throwing them away; disinfecting surfaces you touch a lot; running an air filter; <running an air purifier>; <quitting smoking> [but I do recommend this]; taking pseudoephedrine for sinus pressure; using oral thermometers (rather than skin-surface thermometers); maybe considering hydroxychloroquine as an alternative to chloroquine (but read https://docs.google.com/document/d/160RKDODAa-MTORfAqbuc25V8WDkLjqj4itMDyzBTpcc/edit first); maybe getting a home oxygen concentrator; testing thermometer and oximeter while healthy to get baseline numbers; figuring out who can help take care of you if you get sick; detailed symptom overviews; <using trouble breathing as an early warning sign for hypoxia>; <targeting ~94-96% PaO2 if using home oxygen concentrator>; being ready to go to hospital on very short notice, even if first-week symptoms seem mild; talking to a doctor over phone/video first; taking things to soothe throat and prevent coughing if sick; not trying to lower your fever unless it gets to 103°F or higher; considering postural drainage for severe symptoms; if sick and in an at-risk group, considering signing up for nearby clinical trials
Deleted: being wary of people breathing; never re-using masks
Mar. 31 — Added: lying on your front if you get sick
Deleted: using sleeve instead of hand if your eye itches; carrying a handkerchief for touching your nose or mouth without using your hands
Apr. 1 — Added: using UVC light to disinfect surfaces
Deleted: running an air purifier
Apr. 5 — Added: noting average time from infection to symptom onset is 7 days
Deleted: noting average time from infection to symptom onset is 5 days
Apr. 26 — Added: tips for homemade masks; stocking up on 1+ months of water; watching out for (possibly unconscious) unusually fast and deep breathing as an extremely serious warning COVID-19 sign, even if not accompanied by discomfort or other symptoms; using oximeter every few days even if you feel fine; using oximeter a lot and otherwise monitoring symptoms carefully if might have recently been exposed, or if you start showing lower oximeter readings, other “silent hypoxia” signs, or cold/flu symptoms, rather than relying on fever as the first warning sign
Deleted: using thermometer as an earlier warning sign than the oximeter; using trouble breathing as an early warning sign for hypoxia
Apr. 27 — Added: <keeping Vitamin K intake low/moderate>; avoiding motorcycle races and reproduction; watching for signs of heart attack, stroke, or pulmonary embolism even if you have no other symptoms and no known risk factors; <taking aspirin prophylactically if you get sick or may get sick soon>; maybe using home coagulation tests if sick
Apr. 29 — Added: noting Haagen Dasz refreezes better than other ice cream brands
May 3 —
Deleted: taking aspirin prophylactically if you get sick or may get sick soon
May 8 — Added: noting Erin Bromage’s “Successful Infection = Exposure to Virus x Time” guidelines; avoiding public restrooms; avoiding rooms where someone might have recently coughed, sneezed, or yelled
May 10 —
Deleted: worrying a lot about overwhelmed hospitals in the US
May 12 — Added: noting other forms of oxygen supplementation may be much better than invasive mechanical ventilation
Deleted: targeting ~94-96% PaO2 if using home oxygen concentrator
Jun. 2 — Added: focusing more on large-droplet transmission, less on aerosol or surface transmission; avoiding talking in public; being quiet and aiming down if forced to talk in public; avoiding facing nearby people in public; relying on physical models rather than the “6-Foot Rule”; prioritizing small reductions to larger risks over large reductions to very small risks; meal delivery being much safer than going grocery shopping; disinfecting delivered meals
Deleted: being wary of people ≤ 6 feet away [but I do recommend this]; not buying medical-grade masks since health care providers need as many as possible; not using NSAIDs; quitting smoking [but I do recommend this]
Jun. 4 — Added: this very comment
Deleted: keeping Vitamin K intake low/moderate
Nov. 9 — Added: preamble discouraging hyper-caution and encouraging adjusting to circumstances.
Tobias Dänzer says in a Google Doc comment:
In response to this, I’ve deleted the section on Vitamin K, which was already really speculative. The deleted section is copied below:
__________________________________________________
Per 3G below, COVID-19 seems to be causing blood clots in many people. Vitamin K apparently has a large pro-clotting effect, so I recommend reducing intake of foods rich in vitamin K now, and cutting them out altogether for a few weeks if you think you may have recently contracted COVID-19. Cleveland Clinic says high-vitamin-K foods include:
Other vegetables are generally fine and great.
Eating healthy, exercising regularly, avoiding smoking, etc. also normally reduces clotting risk. (But excessive clotting caused by COVID-19 may not work like normal: the Washington Post says COVID-19 is causing strokes in young people “mostly without risk factors”, and CNN suggests they often have “no past medical history” and have mild or otherwise-asymptomatic cases of COVID-19, all of which suggest the clotting issues may be disproportionately affecting healthy people, even as COVID-19′s more typical symptoms disproportionately affect less healthy people.)