Masks save
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For every 600 people who wear surgical masks in public, an average of one death per year is prevented.
Since the start of the pandemic, there has been a lot of controversy around the world about the effectiveness and necessity of wearing masks.
Jason Ebelak, professor of economics at the Yale School of Management, Laura H. Kwong, assistant professor of environmental sciences at the Berkeley School of Public Health, UCLA, and Stephen Luby, professor of medicine in the Department of Infectious Diseases at Stanford University, have conducted one of the largest and most in-depth studies on mask wearing. It involved 340,000 adults in 600 villages in Bangladesh and tested many different strategies to get people to wear masks.
Field test
The research team decided to bring masks directly to people at home and distribute them in crowded places such as mosques and markets. At the same time, people were provided with information about why wearing masks is important, and religious and community leaders of communities were involved in delivering this information.
While not everyone agreed to wear a mask, mask wearing increased by about 30% among adults who were encouraged to do so. This change has led to a 9% decrease in the incidence of COVID-19. In communities where researchers have promoted the use of surgical masks, COVID-19 cases have dropped by 11%.
“In our study, we measured the effect of a voluntary mask wearing program rather than a universal mask wearing. This led to an increase in the number of people using the mask, up to 4 in 10, while in the beginning it was 1 in 10 – a large increase, but still far from perfect.If everyone were wearing masks, the reduction in COVID-19 cases would likely be significantly greater.People over the age of 50 benefit most from this, especially in the communities where we have distributed surgical masks. decreased by 23% among people aged 50 to 60 years and by 35% among people over 60 years old, “- write the authors.
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EPA
Masks have already become part of the image and advertising
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Quality decides
Scientists estimate that every 600 people who wear surgical masks in public prevents an average of one death per year, given the recent death rates in the United States.
“We also tested the filtration of surgical masks that were worn, crumpled in pockets and purses, and washed up to 10 times with soap. These masks continued to inhibit the passage of more viral particles than conventional cloth masks. Masks with better filtration or fit than surgical masks. Masks such as the KF94 or KN95 masks, when worn correctly, can provide even more protection than surgical masks, “the study noted.
The bottom line is that masks work, and higher quality masks are likely to better prevent COVID-19. If you have the option of choosing between tissue and surgical mask, go for a surgical mask. But the best mask is the one that the person will actually wear and will wear correctly.
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