Dallas Avoiding Excessive Quarantine Weight Gain?
As more businesses, including some water parks today, reopen under new guidelines and officials continue to monitor the state of the COVID-19 pandemic, there’s a lot of information to keep track of. Here are today’s bullet points:
- Dallas Avoiding Excessive Quarantine Weight Gain?
- COVID-19 Case Count Ticks Upward in Dallas County, ‘Not Enough To Start Any Sort Of A Trend’
- New CVS COVID-19 Testing Sites Opening In Dallas
- Take Note: Gov. Abbott’s Office, George Strait Release COVID-19 PSA
Dallas Avoiding Excessive Quarantine Weight Gain?
Dallas residents on average have only gained 0.07 pounds in weight and are not slowing down, having only reduced their daily steps by 1% while shelter-in-place orders were in effect, according to a global study by Withings. They are, however, sleeping on average 10 minutes more a night.
Withings analyzed anonymous data from over 2 million users of its connected health devices to see how American activity, weight, and sleep habits have changed during self-isolation and how the U.S. is comparing to other nations.
In the U.S., 37% have gained more than a pound with the average gain of about 0.21 pounds. Dallas mirrors the national average with only 37.3% of people gaining more than a pound and the average weight gain at just 0.07 pounds, according to the study.
Across the country, people have decreased their daily steps by an average of 7% during self-isolation compared to Dallas where daily steps are down 1%, the study found.
On average, Americans are sleeping 12 minutes longer than normal, but are waking up around 26 minutes later than usual. In Dallas, the study found people sleep an average of 10 minutes longer each night. They are going to bed around 10 minutes later but getting up 24 and half minutes later, potentially benefiting from not having to commute, according to the study.
COVID-19 Case Count Ticks Upward in Dallas County, ‘Not Enough To Start Any Sort Of A Trend’
Dallas County Health and Human Services Thursday reported 202 additional positive cases of COVID-19, bringing the total case count in Dallas County to 9,587, as well as an additional death.
The latest death was an 80-something-year-old Dallas man who was a resident of a long-term care facility. He’d been critically ill in an area hospital before his death and had underlying, high-risk health conditions, officials say.
“(Thursday’s) numbers continue a trend of what we’ve been seeing. There’s a slight uptick today in the number of positive cases but that’s only one day and too small of an uptick to start any sort of a trend. We must continue to practice good decision making and the best way to do that is to go to www.DallasCountyCOVID.org and download the color-coded chart prepared by local health experts as to what activities are safe to perform and how best to perform them. Essentially, their advice is to avoid crowds, maintain 6 foot distancing when out, wear your cloth face covering, not only to protect yourself but as an exercise of the quintessential American value of kindness and respect to others who also find themselves out at the same places you are, and use good hygiene,” Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said.
More than 80% of cases requiring hospitalization who reported employment have been critical infrastructure workers, with a broad range of affected occupational sectors, including healthcare, transportation, food and agriculture, public works, finance, communications, clergy, first responders, and other essential functions.
Two-thirds of cases requiring hospitalization have been under 65 years of age, and about half do not have high-risk chronic health conditions.
Diabetes has been an underlying high-risk health condition reported in about a third of all hospitalized patients with COVID-19.
More than a third of the 222 total deaths reported to date have been associated with long-term care facilities.
Local health experts use hospitalizations, ICU admissions, and ER visits as three of the key indicators in determining the COVID-19 Risk Level (color-coded risk level chart) and corresponding guidelines for activities during the COVID-19 response. Suspected COVID-19 hospitalizations, ICU Admissions, and ER visits continue to remain flat in Dallas County according to information reported to the North Central Texas Trauma Regional Advisory Council.
Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson shared Thursday that 25 hospitals reported bed and ventilator capacity statistics. Of 6,049 beds available, 3,900 (64%) were occupied, of 925 total ICU beds, 584 (63%) were occupied, and of 972 total ventilators, 348 (36%) were in use.
New CVS COVID-19 Testing Sites Opening In Dallas
CVS Health announced Wednesday that it will offer self-swab COVID-19 tests at nine new sites in Dallas.
The new locations are part of the company’s plans to have up to 1,000 such testing sites across the country by the end of May, with the goal of processing up to 1.5 million tests per month.
Testing will be scheduled online and will take place at select CVS Pharmacy locations through the drive-thru window. The sites open today.
Here are the new locations in Dallas:
- 9390 Forest Lane
- 13033 Coit Road
- 7102 Campbell Road
- 7203 Skillman Street
- 10014 Garland Road
- 17410 Marsh Lane
- 3030 Sylvan Avenue
- 150 East Illinois Avenue
- 7979 Beltline Road
Take Note: Gov. Abbott’s Office, George Strait Release COVID-19 PSA
The Office of Gov. Greg Abbott and country artist George Strait Thursday released a new public service announcement (PSA), “Write This Down, Take A Little Note.” In the PSA, Strait encourages Texans to practice good hygiene, wear a face mask, and stay 6 feet apart from others in public.
