https://youtu.be/kn2xWB0sqhE
Masks have–understandably—been incredibly popular during the COVID-19 pandemic, though when officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that people who are fully vaccinated against the virus no longer needed to mask up, there was certainly a temporary drop in use.
Those recommendations have now changed and, with the rapid spread of the Omicron variant across the country along with a recent sharp uptick in COVID-19 cases, people are suddenly paying more attention to their masks once more. This being said, new CDC guidelines for masks are now in place.
If you’ve been using the same type of face mask since the pandemic started, it’s important to know that the CDC now has very specific recommendations on what, exactly, to look for in a face mask. That includes newer designations issued by the ASTM International and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) that help specify exactly which masks in the U.S. are considered high quality. Overall, the CDC recommends wearing a mask made of at least two layers or more of washable, breathable fabric that completely covers your nose and mouth. The mask should also fit snugly against the sides of your face and not have gaps. The CDC also suggests having a mask with a nose wire to help you get a secure fit and prevent air from leaking out of the top of the mask. But the CDC also suggests looking for masks that meet new standards from the ASTM and NIOSH. These masks “are designed and tested to ensure they perform at a consistent level.” Masks that meet one of these designations should also have a label that explicitly state that they’ve met one of these designations
- Meets ASTM F3502. This designation means that the masks are able to be used as “a means of source control for individual wearers by reducing the number of expelled droplets and aerosols from the wearer’s nose and mouth into the air,” per the ASTM. It also means that they, “potentially offer a degree of particulate filtration to reduce the amount of inhaled particulate matter by the wearer,” ASTM says. Among other things, these masks must:
- Cover the wearer’s nose and mouth and fit snugly against the sides of the face and nose without gaps in a design analysis.
- Have a way to keep the mask over the nose and mouth for the expected period of use and range of activities.
- Have non-irritating and nontoxic materials where the mask contacts the skin.
- Be either disposable masks or reusable masks.
- Be able to be worn by people with a range of fit characteristics (excluding children under age 2), or designed with multiple sizes to allow fit for a wide variety of people.
- Meets Workplace Performance. This NIOSH designation means that a mask must meet the ASTM standards, along with providing at least 50% filtration. They also must be breathable and have a leakage ratio of greater than or equal to five. (A higher leakage ratio number means that fewer particles escape around the edges, indicating products provide better source control across users with a variety of facial sizes, NIOSH says.)
- Meets Workplace Performance Plus. This is the best designation a face mask can have. It indicates that a mask meets ASTM standards and provides at least 80% filtration. These masks also must be breathable and have a leakage ratio of 10 or greater. Infectious disease expert Amesh A. Adalja, M.D., a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, agrees. “It’s important to have criteria for the performance of masks so that customers can understand that not all masks are equal and some have been tested to document their performance,” he says. “Standards were important to develop so that manufacturers had a goal to aim for.” But, Collins says, the F3502 standard alone is not overly helpful. “Since the standard only covers 30% to 50% protection (Level 1) and greater than 50% (Level 2), it can be confusing to the customer,” he says. “If you buy a F3502 mask, currently the range of filtration is 22% to 99% from various manufacturers. How does that help the consumer?” Collins points out, though, that all masks that have received one of these designations are listed on the CDC’s website, along with data about the level of protection they provide. So, you’re able to look into specifics before you buy a new mask. Dr. Russo stresses the importance of having a well-performing mask that’s also comfortable to wear. “At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter about the performance characteristics of the mask if it’s not comfortable and you’re not going to wear it,” he says. NN: as you know i have been in the mask dog fight for two years. I was so frustrated i engineered and had custom made our Salvavida mask and filter. It exceeds all guidelines in ever matrix using biolab filter material. And it exceeds all European standards…… and the good part it is reusable. We also offer on our shopping link the proper N95 masks NOISH certified as a second choice. follow this link and scroll down the page Highest level of protection masks and filters. we also have a line of masks for kiddies. Use this link to see our selection of masks for kiddie. Our line of kiddie FUN masks and filters Is it not scarey that they got half way their on their masks guidelines 2 years to late. I shudder to think of the numbers of people who got sicks and died using these toilet paper coffee filter masks…….