Face Masks And Their Effect On Health
COVID-19 pandemic is likely to go on for some more months to go. Wearing a mask is essential, according to the Center for Disease Control. You should also wash your hands frequently to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
We need to wear face-covering and maintain physical distancing. Although one of the best ways to prevent yourself from COVID-19 is wearing a face mask, there are some problems associated with masks. This article brings you some of the major reasons why you should wear masks. It also highlights the overuse of masks and health.
Why should you wear masks?
To protect ourselves from COVID-19, one should wash their hands. But the virus spreads from one person to another through droplets. Whenever you sneeze, cough, shout, talk, or sing, the droplets spread all around you in the air. When these drops get in others’ noses and mouths, they can get infectious diseases, including Coronavirus.
The Center for control and prevention of infectious diseases suggests that a face mask is a good barrier to reduce the spread. Even if they are cloth face coverings, they can cover your mouth and nose well. Asymptomatic people should also wear masks because one can still spread Coronavirus. You should also maintain social distancing, stay six feet apart, and not remove the mask in crowded areas.
To Protect Oneself
Cloth face coverings are also useful in protecting oneself from Coronavirus. The fabric your mask is made up of determines the kind of protection you will get. Some masks have an N95 respirator. You can even use a simple cloth mask. The number of layers in your mask fabric, the type of fabric, and how well you have fit the mask. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is researching the associated factors of face masks.
Hence, it is important to maintain social distance, wear face masks, wash your hands to stay safe from the virus, and reduce the spread of the Coronavirus and other infectious diseases.
What are the different types of masks?
Here Are The Various Kinds Of Masks You Can Use
- Non-medical disposable masks
- Masks that fit correctly
- Mask with cotton or any breathable fabric
- Masks with 2-3 layers
- Inner filter pockets in masks
- Cloth masks with plastic panel
However, it would be wise if you did not use a mask with exhalation valves or surgical masks according to Centers for disease control because they may not protect you from the spread of COVID-19 as the droplets may pass from you to others and vice versa. Goggles and face shields can also be used along with cloth masks.
Overuse Of Mask And Health
We know that wearing masks is necessary to reduce the spread of COVID-19. People are also recommended to wear PPE kits, face shields, and gloves when they go in areas with infected people or possibly infected ones. However, there are some side effects of the overuse of masks on health.
People faced headaches problems because of wearing a face mask or shield because of the inner carbon dioxide trapped in the N-95 respirators. Other adverse effects are reflected in skin reactions such as acne, rashes, and itching from cloth face coverings.
The CDC says, ”Wearing N95 respirators to prevent oneself from SARS, tuberculosis, and the COVID-19 pandemic. These masks protect from minute particles in the air. But, it also leads to carbon dioxide blockage.” However, the Control and Prevention Center also recommends not to use Surgical masks because when you exhale, these face masks fail to prevent leakage.
If one is with COVID patients, surgical masks should not be used. One cannot remove the mask if Coronavirus patients are around. So, the overuse of masks leads to psychological and physiologic burdens. It can also diminish the efficiency of your work. When you remove the mask, one experiences that the work is done better.
Wearing a mask and PPE kit makes any ongoing activity less bearable. But if you wear surgical masks and N-95 respirators for a long time, there are several effects on your health. These are given below:
- Difficulty breathing
- Skin breakdown
- Impaired cognition
Other side effects of the mask on health include:
- Vision problems
- Difficulty in Communication
- Imbalance in thermal equilibrium
What Are The Alternatives To Face Masks?
The Centers for disease control and prevention have found that one cannot wear a mask in all situations. Also, everyone can’t wear face coverings because of breathing problems like asthma. Such people are strongly advised to instead practice good social distancing. They should engage with people virtually as far as possible. It is because they cannot get out in public areas without wearing a face mask. Here’s what you can do:
- When you are in a restaurant, you can sanitize your hands and maintain physical distancing. But, you can also remove the mask while eating or drinking.
- When you are swimming, you must not wear a face mask.
- If one is doing high-intensity activities where a face shield or helmet is not advised, one can stay away from face masks.
- Children below two years of age should not be covered with a mask.
- Anyone who finds it hard to breathe because of a medical condition must stay away from cloth face coverings.
- If someone cannot remove the mask without assistance, such as people with disabilities, they should not be wearing a mask when no one is around.