The Brazilian sports minister desperately tried to calm athlete and tourist fears over Zika Monday ahead of the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympics.
Minister Leonardo Picciani told BBC News “all the precautions” were in place to prevent the spread of Zika. The Zika virus is a mosquito-borne illness that has ravaged the Western Hemisphere for months.
One of Zika’s major dangers is how it affects pregnant women and newborns. The virus has been linked to the developmental disability microcephaly.
Microcephaly causes reduced skull growth and brain development. Children born with the illness have smaller heads and are cognitively impaired. The Olympics are set to start Aug. 5.
Picciani also told BBC News tourists going to Rio to attend Olympic events will “have a great experience.” The sports minister’s optimism contrasts sharply with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) decision “to ask members of the Zika Emergency Committee to examine the risks of holding the Olympic Summer Games as currently scheduled,” according to WHO Director-General Margaret Chan.
The Zika virus can also be spread sexually, according to a 2011 study. At the end of May, WHO released new guidelines for having safe sex if you are at risk of having contracted Zika.
According to WHO, “you should wait a full eight weeks to have unprotected sex or attempt to conceive a baby,” if you have traveled to a country which is known for having several cases of Zika, such as Brazil, CNN reports. The WHO recommendation stands for all travelers to Zika-prone countries, even if they are not showing symptoms of the virus.
The WHO decision to look into the safety of having the Olympics in Rio comes only after more than 150 experts signed an open letter asking WHO to demand the games be postponed as a safety precaution. U.S. cyclist Tejay Van Garderen has asked not to be considered for a spot on the U.S. Olympics Team because his wife is pregnant.
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