MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health advised the public Monday to avoid doing caroling during the holiday season as singing out loud can increase the risk of COVID-19 transmission. The government’s inter-agency task force has yet to tackle the proposal to ban the traditional street caroling to curb the spread of COVID-19 but assured it would be discussed in future meetings. While the government is yet to decide whether to prohibit or allow Christmas caroling, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said there is a study that suggests that loud singing could increase the spread of COVID-19. Researchers from Lund University in Sweden found that singing, especially loud and consonant-rich singing, spreads a lot of aerosol particles and droplets into the surrounding air. Last week, the DOH released guidelines on holiday celebrations, which encouraged limited and shortened face-to-face activities.

Source: Philippine Star November 09, 2020 02:26 UTC