Gender, race, lifestyle, and other factors can all impact whether someone with COVID-19 experiences mild or severe symptoms.
One of the big mysteries surrounding the current pandemic is why some people who test positive for the novel coronavirus exhibit mild symptoms — or none at all — while others have more severe outcomes.
"This is one of the key areas being studied." Abraar Karan, a professor of internal medicine at Harvard Medical School, told Business Insider."Aside from age and comorbidities, we don't know."A growing body of research suggests that heart and lung function play a role in symptom severity. The study from China, for example, indicated COVID-19's fatality rate jumped from about 1% to 6% in those with lung disease or heart problems.
Men are experiencing worse outcomesGender is also emerging as a predictor of coronavirus outcomes: In most countries, COVID-19 diagnoses are split fairly evenly between the genders, but fatality rates are much higher for men. In China, for example, 4.7% of men who contracted COVID-19 died, compared to just 2.8% for women. In hard-hit Italy, the disease was fatal for nearly 15% of men, but only 8.2% of women.
"Unhealthy lifestyle habits can absolutely increase your chances of experiencing more severe symptoms," Ramzi Yacoub, chief pharmacy officer at SingleCare, told Business Insider."Since COVID-19 directly impacts your lungs, people who smoke are at a higher risk, due to how harmful smoking is to your lungs and heart."Alcohol consumption can contribute to liver disease, a risk factor for developing severe coronavirus outcomes, according to the CDC.
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