Mask Mandates Work To Slow Spread Of Coronavirus, Kansas Study Finds

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Shots — Health News
Wear Masks To Protect Yourself From The Coronavirus, Not Only Others, CDC Stresses

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COVID-19 is a respiratory virus. It spreads from person to person, primarily via respiratory droplets expelled when we are in close proximity to others. These droplets can hang in the air — especially indoors, in poorly ventilated spaces. So, blocking the dispersion of such droplets with a mask is a good strategy to cut down on transmission. The CDC recently updated its guidance to clarify that masks protect the person wearing the mask as well as other people.

«You wear masks because the evidence suggests it not only protects you from acquiring the infection, but it protects others around you,» says Jeffrey Shaman, an infectious disease expert at Columbia University.

He says it’s been «incredibly frustrating» to see the use of masks become a partisan wedge issue instead of being seen by everyone as a sensible, public health strategy. «You do it to protect your loved ones, to protect your neighbors. You do it for the good of the country.»

Shaman acknowledges that «we’re all exhausted by this virus. But the reality is the virus doesn’t care. All it looks for is the opportunity to move from person to person,» he says.

And a mask is a harmless, cheap way of slowing it down.

• Pandemic related deaths
• face mask
• coronavirus pandemic
• social distancing
• Midwest
• Kansas