6 ms·

But risk isn't a 1/0 binary. Every moment you are wearing a mask changes your risk. Spending 1 hour in a restaurant vs 10 hours in a restaurant. It all adds up

But risk isn't a 1/0 binary. Every moment you are wearing a mask changes your risk. Spending 1 hour in a restaurant vs 10 hours in a restaurant. It all adds up and it all matters. So yeah, taking your mask off while you eat is definitely going to raise your risk. But not as much as simply not wearing a mask the entire time you're in a restaurant, moving around, getting closer to people and different areas of the restaurant, which probably all have variable particles in the air, etc.

xboxnolifes 5y ago
Risk isn't binary. But constantly taking your mask on and off has risks of its own from touching and rubbing. Similar to not touching your face with your hands to avoid germs, you should not be touching your mask frequently.
strogonoff 5y ago
> So yeah, taking your mask off while you eat is definitely going to raise your risk. I don’t think that’s usually how it works. A regular mask is good at “curbing the fanout” so to speak, but not so great at filtering incoming air. Taking your mask off while you eat is going to raise the risk for everybody around you—unless you use an N95 mask or similar equipment (and use it properly), what your mask does is mostly in fact protecting bystanders from asymptomatic COVID that you may have acquired by restricting outgoing airflow and virions within. Now consider real life, where not everyone wears masks, and my guess is depending on where you are easily less than 10% of mask-wearers wear masks properly. They don’t wear masks over their nose, leave huge gaps between the mask and their face, take off their mask to sneeze or cough (I kid you not). They try to make it easier to breathe, and by extension defeat the point of wearing a mask. Unsurprisingly, masks is the easiest and cheapest measure to be taken, compared to e.g. auditing and upgrading air circulation infrastructure. Unsurprisingly, in many cultures people who think that the mask protects them and don’t know about asymptomatic COVID choose not to wear a mask because they bravely don’t care if they get sick. Unsurprisingly, for the rest of us there’s very little point in being the one-in-ten person wearing a mask in what is a fluid exchange fest anyway. Unsurprisingly, as a result people tend to not wear masks if they can get away with it, and restaurant owners and other people in charge of enforcing the measure on their territory would instruct staff to let things slip rather than alienate their patrons over a seemingly useless measure. Meanwhile, masks are not free. Both in terms of money, and in terms of wellbeing. A properly worn mask necessarily obstructs breathing. One risks becoming infected by their own mask which accumulates virions in circulation (and if you do rotate your mask, an argument could be made that reduced exposure to viruses long-term may weaken the immune system—though I’m not sure if there were studies to support or refute that). Nevertheless, a measure has been taken, and local policymakers may now rest with a false sense of security.
- lobocinza 5y ago
  >A regular mask is good at “curbing the fanout” so to speak, but not so great at filtering incoming air. That applies for cloth masks and alike. N95/PFF2 is a protective gear and should filter ~95% of particles where N99/PFF3 is ~99% if given a perfect fit. Beards and other stuff can reduce the efficiency to ~30% though. > Meanwhile, masks are not free. But they are not expensive and can be rotated. > A properly worn mask necessarily obstructs breathing. Only if you already have difficulty breathing. Studies show no impact on blood oxygenation whatsoever due to the usage of masks in normal situations. What they cause is discomfort due to retention of breath humidity and heat. It sucks to wear a PFF3 while doing intensive exercise, > One risks becoming infected by their own mask which accumulates virions in circulation. Any viruses that accumulate on a mask you would be breathing otherwise. > ...reduced exposure to viruses long-term may weaken the immune system—though. That makes sense. The nose epithelial cells are the 1st line of defense against airborne pathogens. By reducing our exposure we are reducing the efficiency of those cells. > Now consider real life, where not everyone wears masks, and my guess is depending on where you are easily less than 10% of mask-wearers wear masks properly. They don’t wear masks over their nose, leave huge gaps between the mask and their face, take off their mask to sneeze or cough (I kid you not). They try to make it easier to breathe, and by extension defeat the point of wearing a mask. True. Where I live masks are not enforced, we are in the summer and >90% of those I see are not using it. But the few that are still using it are doing it properly. > Nevertheless, a measure has been taken, and local policymakers may now rest with a false sense of security. I agree with you but not because I don't think masks work. It's just that people think that now that they have took the jab and put the mask they can do whatever they want including staying for hours in a fully occupied and closed room where a guy is coughing non-stop. It's just that people are stupid and irresponsible. When I studied workplace safety and health we learned that protective gear is the last measure you adopt. If you have place where exists a risk of people falling you first should attempt to eliminate the risk and improve the ergonomics of the place, like installing guardrails. If that isn't possible you enact administrative policies like forbidding from transiting in the dangerous place unless they have authorization and a reason to be there. And only then you provide protective gear for those.
  - 5y ago
nradov 5y ago
Over the long term your risk of exposure approaches 1 regardless of whether you wear a mask in restaurants. https://www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/vinay-prasad/94646 https://www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/vinay-prasad/94646

xboxnolifes 5y ago

Risk isn't binary. But constantly taking your mask on and off has risks of its own from touching and rubbing. Similar to not touching your face with your hands to avoid germs, you should not be touching your mask frequently.

strogonoff 5y ago

> So yeah, taking your mask off while you eat is definitely going to raise your risk. I don’t think that’s usually how it works. A regular mask is good at “curbing the fanout” so to speak, but not so great at filtering incoming air. Taking your mask off while you eat is going to raise the risk for everybody around you—unless you use an N95 mask or similar equipment (and use it properly), what your mask does is mostly in fact protecting bystanders from asymptomatic COVID that you may have acquired by restricting outgoing airflow and virions within. Now consider real life, where not everyone wears masks, and my guess is depending on where you are easily less than 10% of mask-wearers wear masks properly. They don’t wear masks over their nose, leave huge gaps between the mask and their face, take off their mask to sneeze or cough (I kid you not). They try to make it easier to breathe, and by extension defeat the point of wearing a mask. Unsurprisingly, masks is the easiest and cheapest measure to be taken, compared to e.g. auditing and upgrading air circulation infrastructure. Unsurprisingly, in many cultures people who think that the mask protects them and don’t know about asymptomatic COVID choose not to wear a mask because they bravely don’t care if they get sick. Unsurprisingly, for the rest of us there’s very little point in being the one-in-ten person wearing a mask in what is a fluid exchange fest anyway. Unsurprisingly, as a result people tend to not wear masks if they can get away with it, and restaurant owners and other people in charge of enforcing the measure on their territory would instruct staff to let things slip rather than alienate their patrons over a seemingly useless measure. Meanwhile, masks are not free. Both in terms of money, and in terms of wellbeing. A properly worn mask necessarily obstructs breathing. One risks becoming infected by their own mask which accumulates virions in circulation (and if you do rotate your mask, an argument could be made that reduced exposure to viruses long-term may weaken the immune system—though I’m not sure if there were studies to support or refute that). Nevertheless, a measure has been taken, and local policymakers may now rest with a false sense of security.

lobocinza 5y ago
>A regular mask is good at “curbing the fanout” so to speak, but not so great at filtering incoming air. That applies for cloth masks and alike. N95/PFF2 is a protective gear and should filter ~95% of particles where N99/PFF3 is ~99% if given a perfect fit. Beards and other stuff can reduce the efficiency to ~30% though. > Meanwhile, masks are not free. But they are not expensive and can be rotated. > A properly worn mask necessarily obstructs breathing. Only if you already have difficulty breathing. Studies show no impact on blood oxygenation whatsoever due to the usage of masks in normal situations. What they cause is discomfort due to retention of breath humidity and heat. It sucks to wear a PFF3 while doing intensive exercise, > One risks becoming infected by their own mask which accumulates virions in circulation. Any viruses that accumulate on a mask you would be breathing otherwise. > ...reduced exposure to viruses long-term may weaken the immune system—though. That makes sense. The nose epithelial cells are the 1st line of defense against airborne pathogens. By reducing our exposure we are reducing the efficiency of those cells. > Now consider real life, where not everyone wears masks, and my guess is depending on where you are easily less than 10% of mask-wearers wear masks properly. They don’t wear masks over their nose, leave huge gaps between the mask and their face, take off their mask to sneeze or cough (I kid you not). They try to make it easier to breathe, and by extension defeat the point of wearing a mask. True. Where I live masks are not enforced, we are in the summer and >90% of those I see are not using it. But the few that are still using it are doing it properly. > Nevertheless, a measure has been taken, and local policymakers may now rest with a false sense of security. I agree with you but not because I don't think masks work. It's just that people think that now that they have took the jab and put the mask they can do whatever they want including staying for hours in a fully occupied and closed room where a guy is coughing non-stop. It's just that people are stupid and irresponsible. When I studied workplace safety and health we learned that protective gear is the last measure you adopt. If you have place where exists a risk of people falling you first should attempt to eliminate the risk and improve the ergonomics of the place, like installing guardrails. If that isn't possible you enact administrative policies like forbidding from transiting in the dangerous place unless they have authorization and a reason to be there. And only then you provide protective gear for those.
- 5y ago

nradov 5y ago

Over the long term your risk of exposure approaches 1 regardless of whether you wear a mask in restaurants. https://www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/vinay-prasad/94646 https://www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/vinay-prasad/94646