3 ms·

Completely genuine question here. Have masks actually been shown to help or not help? We must have learned something about it during all this.

• ninjagoo 4y ago
  This study from the CDC website indicates masks have benefits, with increased benefits from certain types of masks - N95 masks seem to be the most effective. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7106e1.htm https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7106e1.htm Yes, I know, the irony!
  • thisisdumb93 4y ago
    [flagged]
    • KerrAvon 4y ago
      You can discard data on this point from the USA because our mask mandates were weak — N95 not required even in medical offices — and compliance was always poor at best.
• jjeaff 4y ago
  There is just no chance that an n95 being worn even somewhat properly wouldn't significantly reduce your chance of catching COVID or any airborne, respiratory virus. My anecdotal experience, and I think it matches with lots of other people, is that I never caught covid for most of the pandemic while wearing an n95 and even travelled and was out in public quite a bit. It wasn't until after I and most other people stopped wearing a mask in public that I caught it. It could have been due to virus mutation or whatever, but I had quite a few close calls where I was around infected people but wearing a mask and did not catch it. I also have a large extended family, so lots of people caught it and there was always a homegrown investigation on where they got it. Every single time, there was always some maskless gathering a week or two before where multiple people became infected or a family member that brought it home.