A report by the health ministry — comparing the first and second wave data — busted the myth that children and younger people are more vulnerable to the recent spike in Covid-19 cases. There was no substantial difference in the number of infected across all age groups.
Who are the most infected?
According to the data, most infected people were in the age group of 31-40. In the second wave (between March 15 to May 25 this year), they accounted for 22.7% of the cases. In the first wave (between July to December last year), they accounted for 21.2% of the total cases.
The second-most infected was the 21-30 age group. In the second and the first wave, the infected people accounted for 22.5% and 21.2% cases, respectively. Infected people in the age group of 41-50 accounted for 17.3% of cases for both waves.
Among the elderly, the infections in the age group of 61-70 accounted for 8.2% in the second wave and 9.1% in the first wave. The infections in the age group of 71-80 accounted for 3.55% in the second wave and 3.7% in the first wave.
Are children vulnerable too?
The lowest number of infections was in the age group 1-10, which accounted for 3% and 3.3% in the second and the first wave, respectively, reported The Times Of India
Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, said, "There is no need to panic about children getting infected in the successive waves." He later added, "an atmosphere of fear was created that a lot of youth and children have been infected in the second surge. This got linked to another issue that if a third wave comes, the children can be more adversely affected."
He also mentioned that children could get infected, but the severity of the infection will be less than those infected in the other age groups. Even those who are not infected now are always vulnerable to the infection. Therefore, everyone should take necessary precautions irrespective of their ages,
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