The chances of a global pandemic, caused by a virus, are higher than ever before. The rapid spread of infectious diseases like the COVID-19 virus has demonstrated how quickly and severely viral infections can spread around the world and cause death and destruction. Viruses are known to be more difficult to combat than bacteria or fungi because they don’t have any cell walls that antibiotics can attack, and because they are much smaller and better able to spread from person to person. This makes them much harder to contain once an outbreak occurs.
Viruses are also unique in their ability to continuously adapt and evolve through mutation and other evolutionary processes. This means that existing vaccines may not protect against future outbreaks, as viruses can quickly develop new qualities that make them resistant to our current treatments. In addition, some viruses have the potential to combine with each other, creating completely new strands that we may have never encountered before.
In recent years, we have begun seeing old diseases like tuberculosis making a resurgence due to antibiotic resistance and overuse of antibiotics; with similar issues happening with antiviral drugs, it is likely that the same could occur with viral diseases. Although we have seen how effective vaccines can be at preventing outbreaks of certain viruses, such as smallpox, this may not always be the case in the future when faced with newer variants. With new viruses emerging all the time, there is no guarantee that our current methods of prevention will be adequate enough for stopping a future pandemic.
The convergence of antibiotic resistance coupled with an increase in novel strains of virus could result in a deadly combination for humanity if left unchecked. Therefore, it is important for us to remain vigilant about taking preventive measures such as researching ways to improve existing treatments or developing new ones so we can fight off any potential pandemics before they occur.
In addition, it is essential for individuals worldwide to maintain high levels of hygiene standards and do what we can to not become vectors for spreading disease further around the globe. We may just be able reduce our chances significantly of experiencing another devastating viral pandemic outbreak in the future.
So, will we be ready when the next one hits? Probably not given how the first one was treated. The United States failed miserable and instead of focusing on how to truly prevent it or reduce the effects of the virus, they basically ruined the country and caused division instead. But hey, at least the drug companies made some hefty profits from our suffering.
