A new study called the timing of contagiousness in patients with COVID-19

Most people infected with coronavirus remain contagious for 5 to 7 days

Scientists have conducted the first real study that provides detailed new insight into when people with COVID are most contagious.

A new study casts doubt on Britain’s current National Health Service (NHS) guidance that people should try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people for five days.

This study suggests that most people with mild COVID-19 are still contagious five days after the onset of symptoms, Sky News reports, calling into question current NHS guidance on how long to avoid contact with other people.

An Imperial College London study found that two-thirds of the participants were still contagious after five days, and a quarter after seven days.

Current guidance from the UK’s National Health Service says people should try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people for five days.

The law no longer requires self-isolation if you test positive for COVID-19.

The new study comes after another showed that most people infected with the Omicron variant of the coronavirus didn’t even know they had COVID-19.

This study shows for the first time how long contagiousness persists after natural exposure to COVID-19 in a community.

The research team performed detailed daily tests when 57 people were exposed to the virus to see how much infectious virus they shed during infection.

Study co-author Dr Seran Hakki of the Imperial National Heart and Lung Institute says: “There is no longer a legal requirement to self-isolate if you test positive for COVID-19, but most people still want to isolate until they are no longer contagious. . Despite this, there is no clarity on how to safely exit self-isolation. Our study is the first to estimate how long contagiousness lasts using real life evidence of natural infection. Thus, our results can serve as a guide on how to exit self-isolation safely.”

Dr Hakki added: “If you test positive for COVID-19 or develop symptoms after being in contact with someone with confirmed COVID-19, you should try to stay at home and minimize contact with other people.”