According to experts, your traditional fabric masks are just insufficient to combat Omicron
The highly transmissible Omicron strain is still causing an outbreak of illnesses across the country. The seven-day average for COVID-19 hospitalizations jumped by more than 40% during the week between Christmas and New Year's Eve, according to the CDC's COVID data tracker. And, in light of the current outbreak, many medical professionals are encouraging the people to reconsider their dependable cotton masks from the previous two years of the epidemic.
"I think the time has come to retire the cotton mask," Dr. Amy Edwards of University Hospitals in Ohio told Fox 8 in Cleveland. Linsey Marr, a Virginia Tech researcher who studies how viruses spread in the air, told NPR that cotton masks "are not going to cut it with Omicron." Here's why your cloth mask alone probably won't be enough to combat the latest COVID strains, and how you should mask up instead.
Why are cotton masks insufficient?
According to Dr. Sachin Nagrani, medical director at Heal, while fabric masks are still preferable to no masks at all, the time has come to transition to medical-grade surgical masks (the rectangular sort that you may see on a surgeon) or respirators (the bulkier, cone-shaped ones like N95s).
"Because of initial supply chain challenges, we moved to fabric masks earlier in the epidemic," Nagrani explains. "However, surgical masks are now widely accessible and function admirably."
After two years of the epidemic, doctors believe it's time to switch from cotton masks to surgical masks, N95s, or any other high-filtration respirator.
Why are surgical masks more effective?
According to a research published in August, surgical masks are 95% effective in filtering out virus particles, whereas fabric masks are just 37% effective. According to Dr. Abraar Karan, an infectious disease physician at Stanford University, "medical-grade masks like N95, KN95, and KF94 respirators are all manufactured out of material with an electrostatic charge," which is the main aspect in "really preventing you from breathing [virus] particles."
Cloth masks cannot make the same claim.
How to find a high-quality mask?
Doctors recommend using a hospital-grade isolation mask or respirator that fits firmly over your face and does not allow air holes around your face. We recently discussed how to get high-quality, medical-grade masks. That information is from last year, but it's still useful for locating genuine N95s.
Nagrani further reminds us that mask efficiency is determined not only by the material used, but also by achieving a suitable seal. Even though N95 and KN95 masks are the most effective against Omicron, they cannot guard against "user mistake" of an unprotected nose.
Similarly, Dr. Leana Wen of George Washington University told People that "a three-ply surgical mask is the bare minimum of what you should be wearing at this time, in the face of such a contagious variant that is airborne." However, Wen adds that if medical-grade options are unavailable, you should combine cloth and disposable masks in the interim. We've known for a long time that doubling up is better than using a single cloth mask; but, keep in mind that N95s and other high-quality masks continue to give the finest filtration, and they're still your best chance for staying warm this winter.
Stay safe and get vaccinated
Dr. Anthony Fauci spoke on ABC News last week to urge people to continue wearing masks, but also to remind everyone that being vaccinated is the most crucial move you can take to stem the spread of the virus and protect yourself and others. At the same time, experts like Marr say they have "a lot of confidence in a N95 and similar types of respirators," and that high-quality masks combined with full vaccination mean "you can still go about a lot of your normal activities." Nonetheless, Fauci says that "the idea of taking masks off, in [his] mind, is really not something we should even be considering."
Here's the CDC's complete guide on masking up for more information on choosing the correct mask for you. If you haven't already, make sure you get your booster shot if you haven't previously. Here's another way to identifying and purchasing high-quality medical-grade masks. You can make it through the winter, just as you did last year, but proper masking is still required to keep safe.
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SOURCE: lifehacker
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