While it has become much more accepted in recent months that covering the nose and mouth can help reduce the case numbers of coronavirus, experts have repeatedly warned that not all face coverings are created equal. Recently, a professor at Duke University developed an easily replicated test to measure just how effective different types of masks and face masks are in removing respiratory droplets that may contain particles of coronavirus. One particular type of face mask scored so low that it was actually worse than not wearing a mask at all: Researchers found that your neck fleece does not work against COVID when it comes to containing drops.
As reported by Fast Company, professors at Duke are developing their testing mechanism (which they say can be cheaply set up by other labs and / or companies that make masks) when approached by a local volunteer group that wanted to donate face masks to those in need – and a kind of donate that would actually protect. Eric Westman, MD, of the School of Medicine, and Martin Fischer, PhD, from the chemistry department, worked together on a test using a black box, a laser, and a telephone camera to visualize the pattern of respiratory drops.
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The resulting study, published in Science Advances, explains that masks were tested by wearing by a person who then spoke the same sis in the box the same number of times. Drops were visible through the light supplied by the laser. “A simple computer algorithm [was] used to count the drops in the video, ”the paper reads, providing data that would allow researchers to rank the masks for effectiveness.
Researchers tested 14 different mask types and one piece of mask material. Not surprisingly, the custom N95 mask, as health care professionals wear it, was most effective at disrupting drips, followed by a surgical mask and a poly-cotton blend mask. Handmade versions of cotton fell a little further down. And last on the list – even under no mask at all – was a neck fleece. Sometimes called a neck brace, it is an item that is often worn by rounds or people who participate in other outdoor sports and activities to stay warm. It can be worn around the neck or pulled over the face.
But neck gaiters are not designed to block droplet spread, and – as these researchers found – are terrible. Talk to a fleece about generating more drops than talking without one. This is probably because the material of the gaiter actually disperses droplets, and generates more smaller generations. “What makes this problematic, of course, is that smaller particles could actually be carried with air more easily than large particles that might just sink to the floor,” Fischer said. Fast Company.
Although there have been conflicting comments made by public health agencies about the transmission of aviation being a serious COVID hazard, many experts believe it is a major concern. There is evidence that infection not only occurs through direct contact from person to person (i.e. someone with COVID cough in your face), but can also occur through aerosolized droplets hanging in the air. For this reason, Duke researchers suggest that the smaller droplets created from speech (like coughing, kneeling, singing, etc.) through a neck fleece may be even more dangerous than what you want to generate without covering your face.
So while these products may have kept you entertained on many winter jogs, they are not suitable for COVID protection. Stick to other forms of face masks and put your gaiter first. And for more ways to choose the right one, check if your mask does not have two of these, it does not work, says study.
