Everything you need to know about fabric masks

Due to problems with the supply of medical masks, many are trying to protect themselves, making masks yourself. But cloth masks have their own characteristics that you need to know about before sewing and wearing such protective equipment.

This is not a pass for free movement around the city

The mask is an additional security measure, not a replacement for everything else, including self-isolation and social distancing. You still need to wash your hands regularly, keep at a distance from other people and if possible stay indoors.

Masks not capable protect you 100% - even medical. And it is important to remember that fabric significantly inferior medical in effectiveness, although it increases your chances of not getting sick.

Even if everyone is wearing masks, the virus will still be able to travel on our hands, things and clothes, and it is possible to get infected through small gaps between the mask and the face. And you are still a potential carrier, even if you yourself are safe. Don't use the mask as an excuse and don't leave the house if you can do without it.

Masks can become a source of infection over time

It is important to remember that the mask is designed to catch droplets of saliva when breathing - and over time it is soaked in them. Therefore, you need to follow a few rules that apply to conventional medical masks. That's what advises WHO:

• Do not touch the mask after wearing it. If you still need to touch, wash your hands with soap and water or use an antiseptic beforehand.
• As soon as the mask becomes wet, change it to a clean one. Do not reuse masks, and in the case of a cloth mask, be sure to wash it before putting it back on.
• To remove the mask, touch only the elastic bands that are attached behind the ears or on the head: do not touch the part that is attached to the face. A disposable mask should be thrown away immediately, and a reusable mask should be sent to the wash. After that, treat your hands and, if necessary, put on the following mask.

An important point follows from the second point: you cannot walk in a mask for a while, then put it in your pocket, and put it on again after a few minutes. Treat the used mask as a source of infection - it is easier to control yourself.

It is not known which type of mask works best

Surprisingly, nobody did not spend large-scale trials investigating how effective cloth or disposable masks are against SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19. In addition, scientists suggest that the use of masks weakens the vigilance of people, as a result of which they care less about other security measures, feeling sufficiently protected.

Recommendations vary, and experts cannot agree on even the most effective type of mask. For example, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends using masks made of several layers of fabric - after which you they publish three instructions on how to make a mask with your own hands, and of them only one of them recommends folding two layers of fabric and stitching them. Another suggests making a mask from one layer of cotton fabric, the third demonstrates a bandana mask with a coffee filter between the layers.

So which of the three guidelines is best to follow? There seems to be no answer yet. Epidemiologist Reina McIntyre, when asked by the Washington Post about which homemade masks are more effective, said: "There is no evidence to support one of the species."

When sewing a cloth mask, try to make it fit more closely to your face, but at the same time be comfortable enough so that you can wear it for a couple of hours without removing it. It is better to make several masks at once so that you can change them throughout the day and you always have a spare while the used one is washed or dried.