Cocooning – more harm than good?

Sir, – William Reville summed up the cocooning issue expertly and powerfully ("Blanket cocooning for over-70s has done more harm than good", Science, May 21st).

Thank God for him and for science, reason and wisdom. – Yours, etc,

JOHN GRIFFIN,

Kells,

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Co Meath.

Sir, –Spending five weeks of our lives cocooning hardly presented a threat to our “emotional and mental resilience”, as William Reville claims. The reclaiming of autonomy, unhindered by outside influences, was clearly demonstrated by a conscious and informed decision to protect not only ourselves, but others. – Yours, etc,

GRAINNE

SHERIDAN,

Glenageary,

Co Dublin.

Sir, – I am in the over-70s age category and glad and thankful that I do not at all feel drained of my resilience after many weeks of cocooning.

While Prof Reville, has, I’m sure, the best of intentions, and I thank him for his concern, this generalised way of speaking about my particular age group is, for me at least, quite unhelpful. – Yours, etc,

E WEYMES,

Dublin 24.