The video below addresses the issue of valved masks during the coronavirus pandemic, and shows you exactly why it doesn’t work for that purpose by showing the insides of the valve!
I decided on the spur of the moment Friday night to make one more last ditch effort to inform the public more widely about the risks of wearing valved masks during the Covid 19 / Coronavirus pandemic.
I just couldn't let go of the fact that the CDC is not making this clear enough last I looked, the WHO is not making this clear, virtually no officials talk about it when masks are discussed, I'm not sure why. Could be, the CDC language on valved masks is outdated, and people need to know it's incomplete.
*The SF government page just updated their mask guidance to reflect the valve issue, but they are so far the only gvt or public health source that has made it clear.
The CDC only mentions that valved respirators (masks) should not be worn by health care workers in sterile environments like emergency rooms but does not tell you why, and neglects to let you know that we should not be wearing them to prevent spread of Coronavirus / Covid 19.
They probably assumed that we would not be infected with an invisible and asymptomatic virus, or that doctors would be healthy if they didn't have symptoms and not in danger of infecting others.
In this video I take one of those valves apart so you can see exactly how useless they are in protecting anyone but the wearer. These were made mostly for carpentry / resin work and smoke protection, which is why I see them worn all over here in California due to the fires and smoke pollution the last few years. For that purpose, these valved masks are great!
But, bystanders need to know and behave as if that person wearing a valved mask is sick and wearing no mask, not feeling a false sense of security. Wearers need to know that a valved mask is not sufficient on its own to prevent spread - it only protects one way, protecting the wearer from contagion, but we are supposed to be wearing masks so as not to infect our neighbors unknowingly, not only protecting ourselves. If you are informed of this you can wear a cloth mask or surgical mask over it to prevent viral particles from escaping from the hole or perhaps tape over the valve.
We should be staying home anyway, but when we can't I see people all over wearing these, probably not realizing they aren't helping to contain spread.
I know this is not fairy related, but hey, I put ears on for y'all! Makeup too but I can't say as much for my hair. This was actually done around 10pm so I did not bother with being very fancy this time and shot it with the front camera of my phone, which is why the writing on the valve is backwards, woops!
The wings will be back again, I promise.
I just want to help in some way to prevent any needless illness or death if I can.
Stores should know this, hospitals should know this, everyone needs to know so we can keep everyone safe.
With more orders given county or state wide to wear masks in public, less and less people are being exposed and more people are protected, but wearing these doesn't just contaminate the air around you for a few seconds. It can stay in the air for much longer as we already know, and can contaminate nearby surfaces.
Please spread the word, the awareness of this information could mean life or death for someone you love. For more on how to properly wear, remove, and care for your masks: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/08/well/live/coronavirus-face-mask-mistakes.html
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/health/coronavirus-best-face-masks.html
For a user self seal check to make sure you have a good fit: https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2018-130/pdfs/2018-130.pdf?id=10.26616/NIOSHPUB2018130
And a special thank you to the SF government site for being one of the few that warns against wearing valved masks! https://sf.gov/information/masks-and-face-coverings-coronavirus-outbreak?fbclid=IwAR34F1a7D7DKpe71WN_eBdMjWABUJBzLBPWKgy-sHfkmhLxRYsb_pOMYS5Q
And remember;
Stay safe and stay home! Continue to practice physical distancing, masks are only an additional step.
Now, if only the stores would let us buy toilet paper for delivery or pickup :/
Logo animation by Anthony Enos.