Speaking English May Spread More Coronavirus Than Other Languages
New Research by UNIC’s Dr Georgios Georgiou featured in Forbes Science
New research by Dr Georgios P. Georgiou (affiliated to the UNIC Department of Languages and Literature), recently featured in Forbes Science, suggests that English speakers put more droplets into the air when they talk, which may make them more likely to spread COVID-19.
The study on the use of aspirated consonants during speech was originally published by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). It looked at data from 26 countries, investigating how these aspirated consonants, i.e. the sounds that are accompanied by exhalation, spray more droplets of saliva into the air, thereby contributing to the transmission of COVID-19.
In this process, it is understood that simply talking drives aerosolized viruses into the air, in the same way that coughing and sneezing does. Perhaps more importantly, the present study suggests that not all talking leads to the same amount of droplets in the air; depending, instead, on which language the speaker is using, with English highlighted as particularly egregious in this respect.
Commenting on the broader implications, Dr Georgiou indicated that this finding can be a valuable insight for epidemiologists: “We do not rule out that the spread of COVID-19 can be partially due to the presence of aspirated consonants in a country’s main language of communication”.
References
Escalante, A. (2020). Why Speaking English May Spread More Coronavirus Than Some Other Languages. Forbes Science.
Georgiou, G.P. and Kilani, A. (2020). The use of aspirated consonants during speech may increase the transmission of COVID-19. National Center for Biotechnology Information.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7263261/
