My read of the various health authorities is that good, regular hand-washing is way ahead of gloves and masks in terms of keeping you and your loved ones safe.
The combination of hand hygiene with facemasks was found to have statistically significant efficacy against laboratory-confirmed influenza while hand hygiene alone did not.
I haven’t looked into the paper carefully to see if it has any methodological issues etc., but this is consistent with what I’ve read elsewhere and common sense (i.e., masks filter out droplets and help prevent touching one’s mouth and nose). The opportunity cost of wearing masks seems low enough that it’s very likely a net positive.
masks […] help prevent touching one’s mouth and nose
I agree in the case of someone who knows what they’re doing. For many, however, a mask does the opposite. Yesterday I went out for two hours and saw someone re-pinching the wire above the nose, someone pushing the mask around their face, and someone taking the mask off and putting it in her pocket.
The latter seems innocuous, but think about it: Taking the mask off, she touched the outside, which had caught all the nasty viruses. Thereafter she ate lunch. Then, coming back from the cafeteria and after touching many shared surfaces, she probably put the mask back on, touching the inside in the process. Then the inside touches her face.
From this 2014 meta-analysis:
I haven’t looked into the paper carefully to see if it has any methodological issues etc., but this is consistent with what I’ve read elsewhere and common sense (i.e., masks filter out droplets and help prevent touching one’s mouth and nose). The opportunity cost of wearing masks seems low enough that it’s very likely a net positive.
I agree in the case of someone who knows what they’re doing. For many, however, a mask does the opposite. Yesterday I went out for two hours and saw someone re-pinching the wire above the nose, someone pushing the mask around their face, and someone taking the mask off and putting it in her pocket.
The latter seems innocuous, but think about it: Taking the mask off, she touched the outside, which had caught all the nasty viruses. Thereafter she ate lunch. Then, coming back from the cafeteria and after touching many shared surfaces, she probably put the mask back on, touching the inside in the process. Then the inside touches her face.