Fact or Myth: Does my age make me more at risk for COVID-19?

By Katie Cavender

NOTE: The following information was published May 21, 2020. For current COVID-19 information, visit LVHN.org/COVID-19.

Anyone can become infected with COVID-19 (coronavirus) and experience symptoms, including shortness of breath, dry cough, fever and nausea. There isn’t any way to know how your body will respond to the infection, however there are certain factors that can increase your risk for complications. Those include:

Age 65 and older
Existing chronic diseases of the lung (including asthma), heart, liver and kidney
A weakened immune system from illnesses such as HIV, cancer or from medications such as steroids
Diabetes
Morbid obesity (a body mass index greater than 40)

To learn more about COVID-19, visit LVHN.org/covid19.