A new article published by the top and respected International business magazine, Forbes, on its website has revealed that the face masks that people are wearing are likely to increase their exposure, not limit it.
The article, titled “No You Do Not Need Face Masks To Prevent Coronavirus – They Might Increase Your Infection Risk,” was published by Tara Haelle, a Senior Contributor for the website and has been read by more than 2.5 million people since it was published on the 29th of February.
The face masks have become popular fixtures today as the world battles with the outbreak of the coronavirus, with citizens wearing the face masks while in public in order to limit their exposure to the virus.
The US has seen its first COVID death on Saturday, February 29, and this has increased panic among the Americans. With this, many are stockpiling the face masks in order to help curtail the spread of the infection.
The Forbes article read in part:
The natural human response to a strange, new disease making its way to a neighborhood near you is to feel anxiety and want to DO SOMETHING. That’s why many people have been buying up and stockpiling masks. But even if you could buy any in the midst of global shortages, should you?
No.
And if you already have masks, should you wear them when you’re out?
No.
Even if there are COVID cases in your community?”
Many countries have seen the prices of the product rise in response to the huge demand for the face masks that the presence of the coronavirus outbreak has created.
Many countries have created policies that prevent businesses from taking advantage of the epidemic to generate profit out of people’s fear. For instance, the Federal Government of Nigeria has warned that vendors who increase the prices of face masks and sanitizers risk jail time.
While we all still feel an increased sense of safety by putting on a face mask when we’re in public, health professionals are saying the effect a face mask has on the virus is very negligible or in some cases, it’ll even have the opposite effect.
Follow OYOGist.com on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for more on COVID-19
