There are two common types of masks on the market today, one that helps protect you from the common cold, dust, and another that makes you safer against viruses like Corona, as long as you buy the right quality and wear it the correct way.
According to official recommendations in the United States (and Western countries), people do not necessarily need to wear anti-toxic masks, because of the need to save poison masks for health workers. Besides, there is currently no scientific research showing that the medical masks or masks that people wear every day are ineffective. In terms of quality, anti-toxic masks have better protection than medical masks.
However, the number of poison masks may be in short supply, so it is necessary to give priority to health workers. Therefore, health experts recommend that healthy people only wear medical masks or cloth masks, and those who are ill can wear poison masks to ensure they are not infected or spread by the virus. outside. These guidelines demonstrate the urgency of saving dedicated masks for health professionals in the context of a shortage of medical supplies and equipment between the war and the Covid-19 epidemic.
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When we need to use medical masks
- If you are healthy, just wear a medical mask if you are caring for an infected or suspected SARS-CoV-2 virus (Corona virus)
- Wear a medical mask if you cough or sneeze – infected or suspected to be infected.
- Medical masks are only effective when used in combination with regular handwashing with alcohol or soap and water.
- If wearing a medical mask, you need to know how to use and properly dispose of it
* How to wear a surgical mask properly, limiting the spread of Corona virus
You should use medical masks when going out. In addition, you should also combine use with measures of personal hygiene, hygiene items, tools, and handwashing with soap. Medical masks used only once, do not reuse used medical masks. You wear the blue side out, the white side in, aluminum clamps facing upwards. Pull the mask to cover the nose and pieces, pressing the aluminum clamp to hug the nose. During wearing the mask, never touch the front of the mask with your hand.
When removing the mask, only hold the strap over the ear to remove the mask, avoid using the handle on the front of the mask to remove. After removing the mask, place immediately in a covered trashcan. Wash your hands with soap and clean water or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer after removing the mask. A small note when using a medical mask is that healthy person, not suffering from respiratory diseases do not need to use masks when they are not needed or can use masks to protect their health.
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The difference between a medical mask and an N95 respirator
It should be noted that, if worn correctly, medical masks and N95 respirators will not provide good protection. So what is the risk? You are still infectious even if you are 2 meters away from others (a safe distance is recommended) and keep your eyes and nose, mouth, and mouth open.
Doctors at Seattle University in the US shared an individual study result based on mechanical physics to review and evaluate the protection of medical masks against the Coronavirus. Research published on Medium found that any physical barrier, such as a medical mask, can significantly reduce the spread of the Coronavirus.
According to published studies, the Coronavirus is transmitted through a mechanism mainly by droplets from sneezing and coughing of an infected person. Analyzing the mechanism of transmission of the disease, the scientists divided droplets into two types based on their size.
Therefore, the N95 respirator mask is designed to filter out the smallest particles, which helps prevent droplets from carrying viruses down to the alveoli.
Large droplets in the palate, on the contrary, can be blocked by any physical barrier, such as a medical mask. Of course, many drops of aerosol during exhalation or coughing may not contain the virus, but some will. In the case of the SARS-Cov-2 virus, we do not know what is the minimum transmission (the number of virus particles required to initiate the pathogenesis of pathogenic disease). On the other hand, US CDC research shows that alveoli is the destination for the virus droplets. Therefore, even for aerosols, using a medical mask is still effective, and it is better than nothing.
The FFP2 anti-toxic respirator can filter out more than 99% of particles (hence, reducing the aerosol load by 100 times). With a medical mask, the number of aerosol drops on the back of the mask decreases 4 times compared to the face of the mask. For larger droplets from coughs, the difference between a medical mask and a poison mask is very small. Interestingly, when it comes to restricting the spread of viruses, the effectiveness between masks is not so different.
From that, it can be seen that a medical mask or a normal cloth mask can also help protect us, at least when we keep “safe distance” more than 2 meters with others and do not use our hands. touch the eyes, nose, and mouth. The chance of getting infected will decrease 4 times if wearing a medical mask and 3 times less if wearing a normal cloth mask. Therefore, wear a mask often when outdoors, especially in public places.
Wearing a mask in public is a way to protect the health of yourself and the community. Whether using a poison mask, medical mask, or cloth mask, wear it correctly, in the right situation. That’s the measure we all need to take to reduce the spread of Covid-19.
From Family Gift
