[2021] My kingdom for a tree stump....

I mean, before making infection easier to cure early game, You, the player, should be being more careful. Avoid zombies until you have a cure- Avoid zombies until you have armor, which dramatically reduces infection chances when worn.

Get cloth, get duct tape, and make padded armor, or find some other relatively safe way to get armor. Should be one of the first things you prioiritize in the game.

Before you have armor, Or a cure for infection, You should avoid being in melee combat with zombies if at all possible (And it almost always is.)