The ManicaPost
Dr Tendai Zuze
Health Matters
YOU may be wondering if face masks are useful in preventing the spread of Covid-19.
The answer is yes.
Face masks, combined with other preventive measures such as frequent hand-washing and physic al distancing, help slow the spread of the virus.
There are different types of face masks and these are worn in different ways.
Surgical masks
Also called a medical mask, a surgical mask is a loose-fitting disposable mask that protects the wearer’s nose and mouth from contact with droplets, splashes and sprays that may contain germs.
A surgical mask also filters out large particles in the air.
Surgical masks may protect others by reducing exposure to the saliva and respiratory secretions of the mask wearer.
These masks provide some protection when N95 masks are not available.
N95 masks
Actually a type of respirator, an N95 mask offers more protection than a surgical mask does because it can filter out both large and small particles when the wearer inhales.
As the name indicates, the mask is designed to block 95 percent of very small particles.
Like surgical masks, N95 masks are intended to be disposable. However, researchers are testing ways to disinfect N95 masks so they can be reused.
Some N95 masks, and even some cloth masks, have one-way valves that make them easier to breathe through.
But because the valve releases unfiltered air when the wearer breathes out, this type of mask doesn’t prevent the wearer from spreading the virus.
For this reason, some places have banned them.
Cloth masks
While surgical and N95 masks are in short supply and must be reserved for health care providers, cloth masks are easy to find and can be washed and reused.
Asking everyone to wear cloth masks can help reduce the spread of the coronavirus by people who have Covid-19, but don’t realise it.
Countries that adopted face masks, testing, isolation and physical distancing early in the pandemic seem to have had some success slowing the spread of the virus.
Cloth masks are cheap and simple to make.
Instructions are easy to find online. Masks can be made from common materials, such as sheets made of tightly woven cotton.
Locally, the recommendation is that cloth masks should be made up of at least three layers of cloth.
How to wear a cloth face mask
Cloth face masks should be worn in public settings where physical distancing measures are difficult to maintain, such as in grocery stores, especially in areas of significant community-based transmissions.
Here are a few pointers for putting on and taking off a cloth mask:
Place your mask over your mouth and nose.
Tie it behind your head or use ear loops and make sure it’s snug.
Don’t touch your mask while wearing it.
If you accidentally touch your mask, wash or sanitise your hands.
Remove the mask by untying it or lifting off the ear loops without touching the front of the mask or your face.
Wash your hands immediately after removing your mask.
Regularly wash your mask with soap and water. It’s fine to wash your mask with regular clothes.
Double masking
Double masking is a new trend where two masks are worn for added protection.
For it to work, you should not wear two masks of similar material.
It is pointless, for example, to wear two surgical masks.
However, a surgical and a cloth mask can be worn together to provide more filtration and therefore more protection from
Covid-19.
Finally, here are a few face mask precautions:
Don’t put masks on anyone who has trouble breathing, or is unconscious or otherwise unable to remove the mask without help.
Don’t put masks on children under two years of age.
Don’t use face masks as a substitute for physical distancing and general hygiene.
Whichever type of mask you have, if worn consistently and properly, it will go a long way in the fight against this deadly virus.
