All of these interventions work in tandem to give us the best chance of gaining control of the situation.” Scientists are in the midst of determining what materials and construction, exactly, make for the most protective cloth face masks. But past and current findings, plus common sense, can provide clues. As Raina MacIntyre, head of the Biosecurity Program at the University of New South Wales’s Kirby Institute explained: “In the absence of randomized controlled studies for SARS CoV-2, you have to look at principles that have been found by clinical effectiveness and lab studies
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Who is This For?
Staying home or staying at least 6 feet apart from others is the best way to reduce the spread of the coronavirus. That goes for everyone, not just people who know or suspect they’re sick, because as a June 2020 review points out, as many as 45% of people infected with the coronavirus might not show any symptoms. But it’s hard to predict whether social distancing will be possible in any given situation. So if you need to be out in public for any reason, you should wear a mask. (An increasing number of states and businesses are mandating exactly that.)
By acting as physical barriers, cloth face coverings can help prevent wearers from transmitting large respiratory droplets to the people around them. Studies, including this frequently cited 2012 paper, have also suggested that a quality face mask may help reduce the chances of the wearer inhaling smaller droplets, called aerosols, expelled by other people, too, though that notion is less established and research is ongoing.
Critically, wearing a mask isn’t an excuse to ignore social distancing, just as wearing a seatbelt doesn’t justify reckless driving.
How We Picked?
As with any personal protective equipment, cloth face masks “are the last line of defense in the hierarchy of controls,” said Ormond, the textile engineer at North Carolina State. “So, while you are wearing a mask, you still need to social distance and practice good hygiene (handwashing). All of these interventions work in tandem to give us the best chance of gaining control of the situation.”
Scientists are in the midst of determining what materials and construction, exactly, make for the most protective cloth face masks. But past and current findings, plus common sense, can provide clues. As Raina MacIntyre, head of the Biosecurity Program at the University of New South Wales’s Kirby Institute explained: “In the absence of randomized controlled studies for SARS CoV-2, you have to look at principles that have been found by clinical effectiveness and lab studies, put it all together, and make sensible recommendations.”
Unlike respirator masks, surgical masks are not meant to create an airtight fit on your face. Gaps by the cheeks mean that drastically more droplets can escape or invade. A recent Northeastern University paper (PDF) reports that a surgical mask sealed to the wearer with a band cut from a pair of nylon stockings went from blocking out 50% to 75% of small particles (less than 0.3 micron) to blocking 90%.
Thanks to a surgical mask’s layers of nonwoven materials, it’s better than a cloth mask at blocking droplets—if the person wears that surgical mask snug to the face. But people rarely, if ever, do. As an April 2020 study suggests, a well-constructed cloth mask that fits well can block droplets better than a surgical mask that doesn’t fit well.
Fitness
As with any personal protective equipment, cloth face masks “are the last line of defense in the hierarchy of controls,” said Ormond, the textile engineer at North Carolina State. “So, while you are wearing a mask, you still need to social distance and practice good hygiene (handwashing). All of these interventions work in tandem to give us the best chance of gaining control of the situation.”
Scientists are in the midst of determining what materials and construction, exactly, make for the most protective cloth face masks. But past and current findings, plus common sense, can provide clues. As Raina MacIntyre, head of the Biosecurity Program at the University of New South Wales’s Kirby Institute explained: “In the absence of randomized controlled studies for SARS CoV-2, you have to look at principles that have been found by clinical effectiveness and lab studies, put it all together, and make sensible recommendations.”
How cloth face masks compare to N95 respirators and surgical masks
An N95 respirator is specifically constructed to block the inhalation of particulates, including virus-size droplets. It should fit the curves of your face without gaping, and it consists of special material that filters out at least 95% of airborne matter the size of 0.3 micron. An N95 respirator mask’s fibers are electrostatic and nonwoven (haphazardly arranged), which makes it harder for particulates to enter. Some N95 masks, including Wirecutter’s picks in our guide to respirators, include valves for easier exhalation. That feature can be great during wildfire smoke conditions. But as the World Health Organization explained to us in an email, such valves can be problematic when the focus is preventing the spread of the coronavirus because by design they can let unfiltered air escape.
Unlike respirator masks, surgical masks are not meant to create an airtight fit on your face. Gaps by the cheeks mean that drastically more droplets can escape or invade. A recent Northeastern University paper (PDF) reports that a surgical mask sealed to the wearer with a band cut from a pair of nylon stockings went from blocking out 50% to 75% of small particles (less than 0.3 micron) to blocking 90%.
Thanks to a surgical mask’s layers of nonwoven materials, it’s better than a cloth mask at blocking droplets—if the person wears that surgical mask snug to the face. But people rarely, if ever, do. As an April 2020 study suggests, a well-constructed cloth mask that fits well can block droplets better than a surgical mask that doesn’t fit well.
Water
As with any personal protective equipment, cloth face masks “are the last line of defense in the hierarchy of controls,” said Ormond, the textile engineer at North Carolina State. “So, while you are wearing a mask, you still need to social distance and practice good hygiene (handwashing). All of these interventions work in tandem to give us the best chance of gaining control of the situation.”
Scientists are in the midst of determining what materials and construction, exactly, make for the most protective cloth face masks. But past and current findings, plus common sense, can provide clues. As Raina MacIntyre, head of the Biosecurity Program at the University of New South Wales’s Kirby Institute explained: “In the absence of randomized controlled studies for SARS CoV-2, you have to look at principles that have been found by clinical effectiveness and lab studies, put it all together, and make sensible recommendations.”
How cloth face masks compare to N95 respirators and surgical masks
An N95 respirator is specifically constructed to block the inhalation of particulates, including virus-size droplets. It should fit the curves of your face without gaping, and it consists of special material that filters out at least 95% of airborne matter the size of 0.3 micron. An N95 respirator mask’s fibers are electrostatic and nonwoven (haphazardly arranged), which makes it harder for particulates to enter. Some N95 masks, including Wirecutter’s picks in our guide to respirators, include valves for easier exhalation. That feature can be great during wildfire smoke conditions. But as the World Health Organization explained to us in an email, such valves can be problematic when the focus is preventing the spread of the coronavirus because by design they can let unfiltered air escape.
Unlike respirator masks, surgical masks are not meant to create an airtight fit on your face. Gaps by the cheeks mean that drastically more droplets can escape or invade. A recent Northeastern University paper (PDF) reports that a surgical mask sealed to the wearer with a band cut from a pair of nylon stockings went from blocking out 50% to 75% of small particles (less than 0.3 micron) to blocking 90%.
Thanks to a surgical mask’s layers of nonwoven materials, it’s better than a cloth mask at blocking droplets—if the person wears that surgical mask snug to the face. But people rarely, if ever, do. As an April 2020 study suggests, a well-constructed cloth mask that fits well can block droplets better than a surgical mask that doesn’t fit well.
Packages
As with any personal protective equipment, cloth face masks “are the last line of defense in the hierarchy of controls,” said Ormond, the textile engineer at North Carolina State. “So, while you are wearing a mask, you still need to social distance and practice good hygiene (handwashing). All of these interventions work in tandem to give us the best chance of gaining control of the situation.”
Scientists are in the midst of determining what materials and construction, exactly, make for the most protective cloth face masks. But past and current findings, plus common sense, can provide clues. As Raina MacIntyre, head of the Biosecurity Program at the University of New South Wales’s Kirby Institute explained: “In the absence of randomized controlled studies for SARS CoV-2, you have to look at principles that have been found by clinical effectiveness and lab studies, put it all together, and make sensible recommendations.”
How cloth face masks compare to N95 respirators and surgical masks
An N95 respirator is specifically constructed to block the inhalation of particulates, including virus-size droplets. It should fit the curves of your face without gaping, and it consists of special material that filters out at least 95% of airborne matter the size of 0.3 micron. An N95 respirator mask’s fibers are electrostatic and nonwoven (haphazardly arranged), which makes it harder for particulates to enter. Some N95 masks, including Wirecutter’s picks in our guide to respirators, include valves for easier exhalation. That feature can be great during wildfire smoke conditions. But as the World Health Organization explained to us in an email, such valves can be problematic when the focus is preventing the spread of the coronavirus because by design they can let unfiltered air escape.
Unlike respirator masks, surgical masks are not meant to create an airtight fit on your face. Gaps by the cheeks mean that drastically more droplets can escape or invade. A recent Northeastern University paper (PDF) reports that a surgical mask sealed to the wearer with a band cut from a pair of nylon stockings went from blocking out 50% to 75% of small particles (less than 0.3 micron) to blocking 90%.
Thanks to a surgical mask’s layers of nonwoven materials, it’s better than a cloth mask at blocking droplets—if the person wears that surgical mask snug to the face. But people rarely, if ever, do. As an April 2020 study suggests, a well-constructed cloth mask that fits well can block droplets better than a surgical mask that doesn’t fit well.
Water Filter
As with any personal protective equipment, cloth face masks “are the last line of defense in the hierarchy of controls,” said Ormond, the textile engineer at North Carolina State. “So, while you are wearing a mask, you still need to social distance and practice good hygiene (handwashing). All of these interventions work in tandem to give us the best chance of gaining control of the situation.”
Scientists are in the midst of determining what materials and construction, exactly, make for the most protective cloth face masks. But past and current findings, plus common sense, can provide clues. As Raina MacIntyre, head of the Biosecurity Program at the University of New South Wales’s Kirby Institute explained: “In the absence of randomized controlled studies for SARS CoV-2, you have to look at principles that have been found by clinical effectiveness and lab studies, put it all together, and make sensible recommendations.”
How cloth face masks compare to N95 respirators and surgical masks
An N95 respirator is specifically constructed to block the inhalation of particulates, including virus-size droplets. It should fit the curves of your face without gaping, and it consists of special material that filters out at least 95% of airborne matter the size of 0.3 micron. An N95 respirator mask’s fibers are electrostatic and nonwoven (haphazardly arranged), which makes it harder for particulates to enter. Some N95 masks, including Wirecutter’s picks in our guide to respirators, include valves for easier exhalation. That feature can be great during wildfire smoke conditions. But as the World Health Organization explained to us in an email, such valves can be problematic when the focus is preventing the spread of the coronavirus because by design they can let unfiltered air escape.
Unlike respirator masks, surgical masks are not meant to create an airtight fit on your face. Gaps by the cheeks mean that drastically more droplets can escape or invade. A recent Northeastern University paper (PDF) reports that a surgical mask sealed to the wearer with a band cut from a pair of nylon stockings went from blocking out 50% to 75% of small particles (less than 0.3 micron) to blocking 90%.
Thanks to a surgical mask’s layers of nonwoven materials, it’s better than a cloth mask at blocking droplets—if the person wears that surgical mask snug to the face. But people rarely, if ever, do. As an April 2020 study suggests, a well-constructed cloth mask that fits well can block droplets better than a surgical mask that doesn’t fit well.