You’ve probably noticed that everyone around you has a different kind of mask on. Some wear the basic surgical masks. Others rock the N95. I wear a Hanes mask or a Darth Vader one. Whatever mask you wear, you may want to reconsider your decision because a new study has offered a look into which masks work the best for stopping the coronavirus.
Duke University reviewed a variety of masks to see which are best at blocking respiratory droplets to protect both wearers and people around them. Yes, this means the study looked at masks that stop droplets from hitting you and ones that stop your droplets from others.
“We confirmed that when people speak, small droplets get expelled, so disease can be spread by talking, without coughing or sneezing,” said Martin Fischer, Ph.D., a chemist and physicist. “We could also see that some face coverings performed much better than others in blocking expelled particles.”
Here’s a quick rundown of what the study found:
Best masks:
- Surgical N95 — These topped the list since they fit super snug on the face and have a thick outside. Public health officials advise people to avoid these, though, because they’re needed for health workers.
- Three-layer surgical — A common mask that allows multiple layers of protection.
- Cotton — The “cotton-polypropylene-cotton mask” is the best of the bunch.
Worst masks:
- Fleece — Any sort of fleece mask is basically like not wearing a mask, according to the study. Yes, this includes fleece neck gaiters. In the study, researchers found those who wore neck gaiters were actually worse at keeping droplets from spreading than those wearing no mask at all since it broke up respiratory droplets into smaller ones that hovered in the air longer, according to The Washington Post.
- Bandanas — These are ineffective. It’s something but still doesn’t completely stop the virus from hitting you.
- Knitted — The study said these masks don’t stop respiratory droplets at all.
Researchers from Florida Atlantic University found last month that masks with two layers of quality fabric had the best results in stopping the spread of droplets from coughing and sneezing, too, which I wrote about for Deseret.com.
Masks remain one of the top ways to stop the virus.
“Wearing a mask is a simple and easy way to reduce the spread of COVID-19,” said Duke physician Eric Westman. “About half of infections are from people who don’t show symptoms, and often don’t know they’re infected. They can unknowingly spread the virus when they cough, sneeze and just talk.