Three reasons you haven’t caught Covid yet
Most of us have been in close contact with someone who contracted Covid but never tested positive ourselves.
It raises questions as to why you would not test positive yourself despite being in the same room as a positive case, sharing food and drink despite how infectious the virus is.
There are three possible reasons as to why you still haven’t caught Covid, despite the situation leaving doctors stumped.
Australian National University lecturer and epidemiologist Dr Katrina Roper helps explain the three main reasons why some don’t test positive.
Common cold
Before Covid, we’d all be exposed to the common cold which would help build immunity against other viruses.
“Having a prior infection to another cold virus can confer some protection to Covid, or other respiratory viruses,” Dr Roper told news.com.au.
”Exposure to other respiratory viruses can prime parts of the immune system, leading to better defence against infection by the SARS CoV-2 infection”.
Research published in the Nature Communications journal in January 2022, confirmed the theory that being exposed to Covid won’t always cause an infection.
“Being exposed to the SARS-CoV-2 virus doesn’t always result in infection, and we’ve been keen to understand why,” lead author Dr Rhia Kundu wrote.
“We found that high levels of pre-existing T cells, created by the body when infected with other human coronaviruses like the common cold, can protect against COVID-19 infection.”
Immunologist Professor Stuart Tangye insists that there’s also a possibility that you were infected with Covid but you didn’t know it.
Your immune system
When it comes to avoiding Covid it could be that your immune system is pretty strong, or the vaccine worked better for you.
Dr Roper however did point out that it could also all depend on the individuals’ circumstance - such as their age, weight and how healthy they are.
She noted that even the healthiest of people could still have weakened immune systems - citing professional athletes who push themselves and in turn feel worse afterwards.
The exposure
Again, everyone has been exposed differently to Covid and while some may have contracted it, you didn’t.
The circumstances of where you are could be affected such as a large house but only two people living there, giving you ample space to stay away despite sharing the same areas.
Genetics
Professor Tangye suggested a fourth reason as to why you haven’t contracted Covid despite your exposure.
Put simply, your genetics.
“There are going to be people who are less susceptible to viral infection because they have differences in their genes, such as genes that are important for viral entry into your cells,” he said.
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