Healthy?! The Asians certainly think so! Or perhaps they don't want to spread germs! And on sunny days, I find it interesting that many older Chinese, hold umbrellas above them!
3
But why do these masks need to be so blasé? Wouldn't it lighten the mood just a bit to have some variety? For instance one could resemble a toothy grin, minus a couple of teeth. Another idea would be for one to look like a dog's muzzle or a cat's nose with whiskers. You might be ill, but you're showing the world you haven't lost your sense of humor!
4
Great idea. Come on J&J +others, when will we see them on the shelves.
I find it interesting that this piece makes no mention of wearing facemasks to mitigate health problems related to air pollution. I've been living in Vietnam for about 6 months now, and face masks are ubiquitous due to the air pollution, general filth, and the prevalence of the motorbike as the choice for personal transportation. Any data or insights regarding facemasks and pollution?
11
Agreed,
but I did order an orgainic cotton mask on line that I wear when driving through LA or other highly polluted freeway areas. Don't need anyone's advise to figure that one out. ---- As I stated in my Comment, however, -- I no longer trust the industrial surgical "paper" masks. They have some kind of built-in pollutant that might be even worse!
I declined to get a flu shot this year so my hospital mandated that I, along with other declining healthcare workers, wear a surgical mask at all times. I never caught the flu, or any other respiratory ailment, all season. What seems even Worse, however, is a hacking cough brought on by a reaction to these masks on my throat. I have had absolutely no upper respiratory symptoms, and nothing adverse going on in my lungs. In addition, there was this awful taste in my mouth every time I coughed--- a distinct taste of some kind of foreign chemical (s). A similar reaction was noted by some of my colleagues, (though most succumbed to the mandatory flu shot.) I have tried to research these masks to see what they are made out of, -- what toxic substances are invariably used in constructing them. I have absolutely no allergies of any kind, -- and this goes way beyond the physical drying effect of the materials. If anyone knows more about these masks, or how I can have them analyzed in terms of their chemical components, ---- please let me know!
3
As a healthcare worker why would you not get the flu shot?
16
If you look into this beyond the surface ---...........they are very controversial. Are you really aware of Everything they put into these shots? I come from a long line of medical professionals (mostly MDs) -- and while having a healthy respect for the medical establishment, -- do not trust Big Pharma or the Ultimate Integrity of the Industry at large. Like everything else corrupted by greed, there are a lot of shortcuts taken, and unsavory practices that put monetary gain way ahead of human health. This I know! None the less, I Never dissuade others- in any way whatsoever, from getting the shots. And I wear the masks religiously while in the hospital. Given, again, how many vaccinated co-workers have contracted the flu, (and did not wear the masks at all times), I have been much less likely to have spread it to patients!
PS. Almost everyone I know who got the vaccine got the flu (with the "oh but it would of lasted longer if you hadn't" meme...) Those of us who did not get it, didn't. Possibly because we tend to be more of the "health freak" types ---- which invariably entails eating Real Food and taking as few (or No) pharmaceutical meds as possible.
4
Another poor science article. Masks are designed to capture water exiting your mouth and protecting others. The trial referenced did not demonstrate any efficacy for the masks. A large number of participants got sick.
2
Thanks for confirming my assumption, these masks are fairly silly. Sure, they reduce the airborne virus load taken in by someone. But nobody manages to keep the mask on 24 hours a day for the entire flu season, and pathogens get transmitted by surfaces too. Even with a mask, people are going to be reaching under it to scratch their nose, after putting their hands on a surface and picking up viruses thereby.
What would also have been interesting is looking into why, as far as I've seen, the people who wear these masks are well over 95% of the ethnicity which I hopefully inoffensively would term "East Asian", and whether the masks wind up having an aggregate effect after all. Like, in flu season, do East Asian people contract the flu less than other ethnicities?
2
If you stay in your bedroom and never venture out, you don't need a face mask,
6
My dream
8
Of course they chose an Asian female with the mask on for this article. #NotSurprised
1
I’m sure that’s the only stock photograph they could find. I’m a flight attendant and, sorry, but the only passengers you routinely see wearing masks are Asians. Just the way it is lol.
4
If you're sick, you're doing a great public good by wearing a mask if you have to go out in public. This is a culture change we could all benefit from. If you have the flu, you might be saving lives (best, of course, to just stay home if you can).
I've always hoped airlines would announce at the start of each flight that they have masks available to anyone who is symptomatic.
13
from my understanding after watching TV programs about how frequently we touch the mucus membranes of our nose (ideal transmission point) - every few minutes - and also touch everything common in our environment - door handles, table surfaces, it seems to me that wearing a mask at least inhibits this transmission from door handle to nose mucus membrane.
As the article says - reducing our chance of getting the infection by 60-80%.
2
I was at a large hotel recently and a busload of Japanese people arrived. At least 6 -10 were wearing surgical masks. I have never seen that before, but it might well be something that is accepted and promoted in Japan. Not necessarily a politically incorrect picture ------------ie, -- and it may well make them look a whole lot smarter than the rest of us in this country where Appearances rule.!
In Japan, I believe people wear masks when they are sick, to prevent others from getting their infections, more so than to wear them to keep theselves from getting sick. They have a different hygiene ethic than Americans.
Moreover, facemasks, like any filter, like filters used in drinking water fountains, have to be used carefully, so they don't become the collection points and breeding grounds for viruses and other bad stuff, so they must be changed regularly ( that's why they must be cheap enough to buy, hence disposable) and also disposed of carefully (like used facial tissues after being used to blow noses and cough up phlegm). Americans have polarized and moralized attitudes toward health and sickness that is, at core, unhealthy for all of us, but that's too long to comment on here.
18
Not helpful to law enforcement or any checkpoints where it's preferable that people do not have their faces covered for the public safety. We're already going through a lot to accommodate women who prefer to keep their faces covered because other people can just as well use the same garb for nefarious purposes.
Anyway, I'm not convinced a steamy breathy cloth stuck on my face is providing less germs when they are all stuck to it and I'm getting no fresh air. Ick. Is it better to have the germs from the guy net to you floating around or stuck to your damp, funky face mask?
6
I don't think that health authorities are going to recruit the public effectively into better health practices by referring to them using labels such as the "worried well".
7
My doctor once referred to me with that term to dissuade me from calling myself a hypochondriac. Does sound better, no? Of course, if you're going to cover your face, what's the point of getting dressed and going out? Do people show up on dates in these things?
2
We will all soon be wearing masks--oxygen masks once Trump and company get done dismantling EPA regulations and our air becomes more Beijing-like. Hopefully, they'll protect against the flu too. Can't imagine how polluted lungs would handle a severe case of the flu.
If you have kids in high school looking for career direction, have them look into training to become embalmers/funeral directors. Should be a booming business in the future and one that will be hard to outsource.
13
Why bring politics into this issue of whether or not a face mask is effective? The article is not about the use of face masks in conjunction with poor air quality due to environmental abuse. It is strictly about contagious diseases.
"have them look into training to become embalmers/funeral directors" or they can go into healthcare as well - what's your point?
5
I want to start wearing one in the airport (not the security area) and on the plane with people coughing all over me. it's gross and costs me a lot when I miss work from illness.
11
I don't know if these are the same as breathe right masks used for airborne pollen but I swear by the ones I have used on days with a high pollen count.
7
Just don't walk into a bank wearing one.
19
Why do I suspect that the greatest benefit of wearing the mask is that it stops you from touching your own face with infected hands?
31
Standing 6 feet away from a possible sick person is an impossibility on Tokyo trains. Masks are courtesy AND self-preservation. And now I wear one every day because it’s pollen season; we have special ones that block out pollen.
25
Having just gotten back from a wonderful - revelatory - 5 weeks in Southeast Asia, I assumed people wore masks to deal with air pollution....
13
If you are sick, please stay home. If your workplace culture makes this difficult, try to change that culture or work at home. This is the best way to keep others from catching what you have--they will thank you for it.
36
Only works if it has a cartoon cat or bear on it.
12
I have started wearing a mask occasionally due to low immune system. I recently was on a flight within two rows of a woman who coughed for 6 hours. Days later I had a horrible cough/flu. I wasn't wearing a mask. However, I'm with the commenter who said masks should be available at airports and surely an airline could hand them to a person boarding who is obviously ill. It would do us all an enormous favor. But I really wish sick people would do what they really should do: STAY HOME!
29
I hear you.
Unfortunately, the airlines with their punitive cancellation policies do not.
27
As a person who has been to Japan and has many Japanese friends, Japanese wear them to protect other from their coughs and sneezes. Pretty much the same reason medical professionals wear them - to protect others.
The main benefit of wearing a "courtesy mask" for a healthy person is that you are much less likely to inadvertently touch your face with your hands and that is the main source of transmission of infections.
21
In China n India I get it but in NYC I think it’s a statement of superiority
3
A statement of superiority? Give me a break. I developed allergies as an adult. I now wear masks on trains and buses to limit exposure to triggers and minimize the chance of experiencing shortness of breath for the rest of the day / night. Maybe you and others commenting here can accept that people have their own reasons for doing things.
23
I've had asthma since I was eleven years old, and now in my fifties, exposure to synthetic chemicals in hairspray, hand lotions, perfumes, colognes, etc. triggers a miserable tightness in my lungs. Since I spend over 90 minutes on public transit five days a week, my filtered mask protects me from asthma attacks and the resulting hours of pain. Anyone who considers a mask to be a status symbol or an affectation clearly has never suffered from allergies or asthma. They should consider themselves lucky.
24
When worn by someone that is actively sick, as they are often in Japan, it is a courtesy that might well keep others from getting sick. What's wrong with this? Judging from most American's behavior, they generally don't seem to care if they get others sick. I work with folks who are sick and they still shake hands and only when asked if they are sick, might say "I'm fighting a cold." It's really not fair.
It's not a matter of superiority. It's survival and respect! It's a necessity for those with compromised immune systems or those having to commute in and amongst others who are sick and who refuse to use hand sanitizer, wear a mask, or stay home.
I think this is a custom that we as Americans should adopt as well. But I doubt that my fellow Americans would be willing to announce their illness even if it is seems a show of respect for others.
6
"Surgical masks also afford fairly good protection [against airborne influenza] for the worried [as] well."
what about particulate matter (PM) 10 or 2.5 and other pollutants? many people in polluted cities (see east and south asia in particular) wear masks.
4
Casual observation lends itself to this being a strange affectation practiced by Asian women. I've never asked why.
10
This article totally misses the boat. The goal of surgical masks (outside of OR's) is for those who are ALREADY INFECTED not to share their cold/flu with others. On airlines they would be a godsend. They should be available free at every airport, shopping mall, grocery store, gym, any place a person with cold/flu might sneeze and infect a dozen others.
38
Out of common courtesy, the SICK person wears the mask, not healthy people! Jeez!
3
Read the first sentence again. "The best evidence suggests that, when sick, wearing a mask can help to protect others from getting sick." Isn't that your point?
16
I'm pretty sure the masks work both ways, keeping sick people from spreading their germs and keeping healthy people from getting exposed. A person's reason for wearing these masks is their own, not for you to decide why they are wearing it.
6
A couple of years ago, I was diagnosed with a primary immune deficiency. I now try to remember to wear a mask when in public, and according to my highly unscientific study with a sample size of 1, i.e. me, whenever I forget to wear a mask, I invariably come down with something, and when I remember to wear one, I don't. Not foolproof, sure, but I'll take what I can get. (And a side note related to health insurance: we ALL have a pre-existing condition of some kind; we just don't know it yet.)
23
I know that flu shots also don't offer full protection, but I've discovered that whenever I do get a flu shot, I don't even get a cold that winter, so I think I'll pass on the mask and just go straight for the flu shot.
11
A flu shot will not prevent the flu nor will it prevent colds. Besides the flu, there are other viral problems that you can catch even if you had a flu shot.
1
Of course, a flu shot will prevent the flu (if they're the same strain). That's the purpose.
One advantage of masks during air travel is that the mask helps to keeps your nose from drying out since you are partially breathing in your own exhaled moisture. A moist nose is critical to defending against airborne infection. Indeed JAL provides masks to flyers which they call moisture masks.
50
I wear them in airports and planes and they work like a charm. I have never gotten the flu when traveling.
12
I travel a great deal, have never worn a mask, and also have never gotten the flu while traveling.
36
Lucky you. I caught the flu when flying about 9 years ago. It was miserable. I had flown to a celebration of my mother's life, only to stay in bed, miss the celebration and have my 92 year old father have to take care of me, when it was my intention to help him with a few things.
6
Masks do not "...really keep you healthy" But if you cannot avoid being near someone who is sneezing or coughing, like on a plane, a mask is valuable. It's just common sense. I suggest an N95 mask which blocks smaller particles than ordinary face masks but even a basic dust would be better than no mask. Aerosolized particles coming from a sneeze or cough are much larger than individual virus particles. So you don't really need an N100 mask, the most efficient at blocking individual virus particles.
A mask will also help keep you from touching your mouth or nose. That just leaves your eyes as the primary entry points for infections, viruses or bacteria.
39
Not sure what "reduce 25 fold means". I guess it's a lot.
6
It means 'twenty-five times more'. So the mask decreased the number of large viral droplets 25 times better than not wearing one.
7
Or, in this case, it might be easier to think of it as reducing the specific number of "viral droplets" that make it into your respiratory tract during exposure to a given environment to 1/25th of what they would have been if you didn't wear the mask, thereby making you, theoretically, 1/25th as likely to contract influenza from that same exposure.
3
This makes no sense. 25 times zero...
2