Used to be, in the UK, a mask was something you might wear on Halloween or to a fancy dress. Other than that, you would only don one regularly if you worked in specific fields of medicine or healthcare. Covid 19 has changed all that.
Over the course of the crisis, advice on mask wearing has been on a journey of its own. Initially the general advice was that wearing masks did little to reduce a person’s risk of contracting coronavirus or passing it on to others. Last month the World Health Organization changed its advice and gave support to the wearing of masks as a worthwhile method of reducing Covid 19 transmission. This change appears to have been triggered by evidence that viruses can be spread effectively by micro-droplets. This transmission could take place through simple face to face conversation not just by someone coughing or sneezing near you. The same evidence showed that micro-droplets could remain in the air in an area for prolonged periods where there was not a means of through ventilation, (see the article below by Douglas Broom which includes a video explaining the research).
The conclusions from the research was that infection rates can be reduced by good room ventilation and air circulation. Also, it has been taken up that wearing masks can reduce the likelihood of micro-droplet transmission between people in relatively close proximity.
It is important to mention at this point that it is not known what level of micro-droplet contact is necessary to transmit disease between people so the risk cannot be accurately assessed.
Wearing of masks as a protection against disease is something which has been practised in many Asian countries for many years. It is common to see street scenes of Japan and China where many people are wearing masks. Data shows that these countries have been generally more effective at slowing up the spread of coronavirus disease across their populations. It is probably not simply the mask wearing; some of the countries employed very early strict quarantine procedures and developed effective test and trace systems. However, wearing a face covering could be a significant factor playing into their success.
It is against the background of this evidence that the Scots and English governments are making it mandatory for people to wear masks in shops where we are likely to find ourselves in close proximity with strangers and therefore at greater risk of picking up or transmitting Covid 19. To quote from David Alexander Walcott in his article below for the World Economic Forum Covid Action Platform, ‘if there is even dubious benefit to the widespread use of masks – consideration is merited. In addition to the general low-risk nature of this intervention, the anecdotal and scientific evidence that surrounds their widespread use is indeed cause for pause’.
The articles below give more detail on that evidence and advice on which face coverings to wear and how to cope with them in the heat.
‘WHO Changes Stance, Says Public Should Wear Masks’ by Ralph Ellis on WebMD
‘What is the evidence on wearing masks to stop COVID-19?’ by David Alexander Walcott on the World Economic Forum webpages
‘This Japanese experiment shows how easily coronavirus can spread – and what you can do about it’ by Douglas Broom on the World Economic Forum webpages
‘Pro’s and Con’s of wearing face masks’ – COVID19’ on #10millionmasks
‘Which Face Mask Should I Wear?’ by Abrar Ahmad Chughtai on The Conversation