The “disease burden”, as it is called, is affected by factors such as the age distribution in the population, along with the amount of immunity and social interaction.

If a large part of the adult population develops good immunity to COVID-19, children will be the individuals who become infected to a greater extent. Young people usually get mild cases.

“Immunity builds up in the population, except for young people who may be exposed to this for the first time,” Nils Chr. Stenseth, a biologist and professor at the University of Oslo, said to sciencenorway.no.

“As a result, we wonder if the coronavirus will eventually become a childhood disease,” Stenseth said.