How to wear a mask, and will it save you from the coronavirus

Due to the psychosis around the new COVID-19 virus, stock indexes are in a fever, manufacturers of pseudo-medicines do not have time to stamp miracle pills. Ordinary people do not find anything better than to sweep medical masks off the shelves instead of studying the topic of banal antiviral protection at least superficially.

So how to wear, when and where to wear, and whether to wear these masks at all, which have already become a scarce commodity in most Russian pharmacies?

Let's start with the basics. A medical mask, which is on rubber bands and rectangular, two- or three-layer, which has recently become a terrible shortage for some reason, will not save from the Chinese coronavirus (here and further — as well as from the banal SARS)!

Firstly, viruses can penetrate through the filter element of such a mask. Secondly, it does not fit tightly enough to the face, so the path for viruses is open. Remember, write it down, tell it to your neighbors and don't spend money on masks that have gone up in price in some pharmacies dozens of times.

Its function is completely different. It is designed to protect others in the event that you are the carrier of the infection. In other words, it should be worn if you are ill, but are forced to contact healthy people. In this case, the mask traps most of the microbes and viral particles contained in saliva and nasal mucosa while you sneeze or cough.

There are several types of effective protection of the respiratory tract of doctors during epidemics, which can also be used by ordinary people. The medical respirator fits much better to the skin of the face, it has a special aluminum plate for maximum contact with the skin in the area of the bridge of the nose, and it is fixed on the back of the head with special adjustable elastic bands.

According to it, respirators or filter half masks for protection against aerosols are divided into three classes depending on their filtering efficiency: FFP1 (low efficiency), FFP2 (medium efficiency) and FFP3 (high efficiency). The penetration coefficient through such half masks should not exceed 25%, 11% and 5% for FFP1, FFP2 and FFP3, respectively. All of them are more suitable for protection against viral infections than surgical masks.

The other day, the Mayor's office of Novosibirsk advised citizens, in the absence of pharmacy virus protection products, to sew masks themselves from gauze and cotton wool, wash and iron them with an iron. In Russia, it is forbidden by law to criticize the government, no matter how stupid it is, so let's leave this advice of Novosibirsk officials without comment. Instead, let's list a few tips for protecting against viruses.