The favorable medical opinion
In Switzerland, even those who are on the front lines fighting the serious threat of Covid-19 have very clear ideas of the validity of the use of the bicycle in this long quarantine. This is the case of Dr. Christian Garzoni, specialist in general internal medicine and infectious diseases, as well as Health Director of the Moncanese Luganese Clinic: trauma or polytrauma. I don’t really think that a person on a bike can get infected, except in the case where he stops to chat with someone else closely: it must be remembered that the virus is transmitted with prolonged contacts under 2 meters. Besides, people are stuck in the house and no longer move: this is not good for health. Physical activity in general reduces the risk of infections, as amply demonstrated with the possibility of contracting normal flu. Vitamin D also seems to help. In the absence of deficiencies, it offers better control of the evolution of the disease. With the help of the sun, it is even better: if we remember the times of the sanatoriums for tuberculosis, the sunlight improved the course of the patients ».
Opportunities to be seized: clear abroad immediately
Germany started with Der Spiegel, who already a week ago recommended the bike more than public transport because it could guarantee social distance and an unlikely infection with the virus. As stated in his speech by the German health minister Jens Spahn, also confirmed by nationally renowned scientists. In Germany, the message that we wanted to get through is that the bicycle is undoubtedly better than the metro and buses to face the new coronavirus. In the same article, the well-known Teutonic pulmonologist Michael Barczok said that the possibility of inhaling Covid-19 is “zero”. This authoritative contribution was immediately appreciated and was commented on Facebook also by the CT of the Italian national cycling team Davide Cassani, who took it up by inviting the discussion, focusing on the fact that the bicycle guarantees the best “self-protection”: on the other hand, the the lungs of those who pedal are more “robust”, better ventilated and able to better withstand even a possible “stress” from the disease.
In Denmark, where the infrastructure investment has brought Copenhagen to the headlines of the world, at the height of the government recommendations regarding transport there is simply one, very clear, linked to the two wheels: avoid public transport in the short term distances and consequently walking and cycling. Car not even contemplated.
To Amsterdam, in which the official social distance is 1.5 meters, the same recommended worldwide for overtaking bicycles and where it is known that riding a bicycle instead of public transport is implicit, there are several favorable opinions. The virologists, always a few days ago, recommended the use of the bicycle through the media, even side by side but not in large groups, as long as they kept the right distances. They recommend the use of the bicycle because movement is fundamental for the immune system which, at this moment, must be maintained with great care at maximum functionality. The doctor of the Dutch triathlon federation explains that «If a pathogen (like Coronavirus) manages to overcome the first line, it collides with the second one: that of white blood cells circulating in the blood. If your immune system works less, intruders are more likely to enter your body. ” As for Vitamin D, for athletes it recommends “0-25 micrograms per day (which corresponds to 800-1000 IU) to maintain the desired level”. In an interview with the newspaper Het Parool, the mayor of the capital Femke Halsema recommends “not to crowd the public transport, which has long been reduced in frequency”, instead pushing the use of the bicycle, describing it as “the best and healthiest option for public transport” urban”.
From London The Guardian thought about throwing the stone into the pond first. The British cycling federation has urged the emergency officer Matt Hancock to still allow sports, but the real goal is to remind the population that for that third of daily journeys of less than two miles, about three kilometers, it is preferable to use the bicycle. both to avoid contagion and thinking about the consequences of medium and long term sedentary life for diabetics or for patients with cardiovascular diseases. Instead of prohibiting, therefore, it is required to push the use of the bike in total replacement of short-range public transport and the recipe is easy: according to the prestigious newspaper, it is sufficient to dedicate special road lanes to cycling with a simple and quick laying of cones .
