Is your cloth mask good enough to keep Covid at bay? Think twice

New Delhi, Jan 24 The Covid-19 pandemic has resurfaced, and if the last two years have taught us anything, it's that the coronavirus should not be taken for granted. And, while face masks have become a necessity amid the two-year-old pandemic, many people are still confused about which masks to use. Some of these questions have resurfaced in the wake of the discovery of Omicron, a highly transmissible variation.

Let's take a quick look at right masks that can help keep Omicron at bay and what are the effective mask wearing etiquette that needs to be followed.

To begin, it's important to understand the distinctions between fabric masks, surgical masks, and respirators. A fabric mask is a loose-fitting mask that forms a physical barrier between the wearer's mouth and nose and potentially harmful substances in the immediate area. A surgical mask is a three-layered mask worn by medical professionals during surgeries. N95 respirators, on the other hand, are personal protection equipment that shields the wearer's respiratory system from airborne particles and aerosols.

The N95/FFP2 provides a high level of protection against flu, infection, and other airborne viruses. N95/FFP2 masks are typically five-layers with electrostatically charged melt-blown filters that provide adequate protection from airborne particles aerosols as small as 0.3 microns and have been rigorously tested for numerous transmission circumstances. This implies it can filter out the majority of bacterial, viral, and particulate aerosols. Such masks are made to fit perfectly, which means that leakage from the sides of the mask is reduced. According to recent data from the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists

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