A new study has confirmed that shopping is the most dangerous activity for individuals regarding exposure to the COVID-19 virus, followed by exercising outdoors. According to the British newspaper "Daily Mail," the study conducted by the UK government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) examined the daily activities of over 10,000 individuals in England and Wales between September and November 2021 to analyze the most hazardous activities related to COVID-19 infection.
Researchers found that individuals who go to stores at least once a week are more than twice as likely to contract COVID-19 compared to those who shop online. Following this, exercising outdoors posed a risk, with individuals participating in such activities being 1.36 times more likely to contract the virus. The study also noted that people who frequently use public transportation were approximately 1.3 times more likely to get infected than others.
Bus users were found to be 1.3 times more susceptible to infection, followed by taxi users at 1.19 times, and train or tram users at 1.18 times. Other high-risk activities identified in the study included dining indoors at a restaurant or café, going to work, and attending a gym.
The study team confirmed that no increased risks were found for those attending theaters, cinemas, concerts, sports events, visiting barbershops or hair salons, or dining outdoors at restaurants or cafés. Researchers indicated the need for a more extensive study, acknowledging that the low number of young people in the study group could have influenced the results.
