As the season changes and the weather warms, people in isolation are asking — COVID-19 or not — can I go outside?

“Don’t go out unless you absolutely have to,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau urged on Monday. “And if you do, keep two metres apart from each other.”

Trudeau’s warning stands in stark contrast to that of provincial health officer Bonnie Henry, who last week urged residents of British Columbia — the province that has planked the curve — to “go outside” but practise social distancing.

“The risk that someone who is sick spreads this virus from coughing or sneezing outside and you walk by them very quickly, even when it is within six feet, that risk is negligible,” she explained.

Experts sided with Henry and reaffirmed that going outside — taking in the warm weather and sunlight — is good for health.

“(The chance of) catching this virus outside, when you’re out in the environment and out in nature is small,” said Narveen Jandu, a professor at the University of Waterloo’s School of Public Health and Health Systems. “Because the virus is not transmitted via insects, nor is it in streams or the grass, people need not worry.”

Craig Janes, the director of the school, pointed out that people are at highest risk of catching COVID-19 in cluster settings, such as longterm care facilities, hospitals and even at home if there’s a case of infection. Going outside, just to simply be outside, poses no greater risk.

In fact, Janes said he believes that provincial restrictions limiting access to parks, trails and other public areas may be detrimental to people’s health.

With conservation areas taped off and footpaths blocked, people are forced to stroll through their residential neighbourhoods where they encounter others every three minutes during a 20-minute walk.

Opening parks and trails would allow people to more widely disperse, he said, which is a key factor to limiting transmission of a virus such as COVID-19.

“If you’re otherwise healthy and you’re going outside in nature, there’s low risk of (getting) COVID-19,” Jandu said. “But if you stay inside for an extended period of time, there’s a greater risk to your mental health and wellness,” she said.

The differences in messaging may seem confusing, but Jandu advised that the novelty of virus means there is still much to learn and individuals relaying the messaging “are doing the best with the information they have.”

“Some provinces have few cases, while others have a more dire situation,” she said, so the information depends on their own situations. Trudeau, on the other hand, has to consider the “health and wellness of the … entire population of Canada,” she added.

Vivek Goel, who teaches at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health and the University of Toronto, agrees it’s fine to go outdoors, as long as people take precautions such as physical distancing, proper hygiene and self-isolation.

“These precautions … will need to be continued to be taken until we have higher levels of population immunity, which is not going to happen for some time.”

In Ontario and Quebec — the worst-hit provinces — residents are allowed to take walks and exercise outdoors.

“But plan it,” said David Williams, Ontario’s chief medical officer. This means, picking a time and location where one can avoid crowds and maintain the two-metre distance. If you can’t avoid crowds, wear a mask, he added.

Quebec has announced plans to gradually reopen the economy, with some retail stores already beginning to open. However, rules around physical distancing remain the same, according to Premier Francois Legault.

Alberta’s Chief Medical Officer Deena Hinshaw advised residents to “try to not leave your neighbourhood” when going outside. “Avoid contact with people you don’t live with, that’s very simple,” she told reporters on April 21. “The challenge comes when people start to pre-plan gatherings … lots of people going to a place where they don’t normally live.”

New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, as well as Saskatchewan, have eased restrictions on certain outdoor activities, allowing people to golf, fish and hunt.

Nova Scotians may also visit trails and municipal and provincial parks, but are advised to exercise caution.

“If you do drive to a park and there’s already a significant number of vehicles there, please don’t stop, go somewhere else,” said Robert Strang, Nova Scotia’s chief medical officer of health.

Manitoba’s announcement to reopen several public spaces — playgrounds, tennis courts, campgrounds, parks — comes with heavier enforcement and education of public safety measures as of May 8.

Editor’s note: The article has been updated to reflect a change in one of Narveen Jandu’s quote. The original quote said, “But if you stay inside, there’s a greater risk to your mental health and wellness.” The updated quote now reads, “But if you stay inside for an extended period of time, there’s a greater risk to your mental health and wellness.”

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