The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that masks that fit snugly or the use of two masks may significantly reduce a person’s exposure to COVID-19.
The CDC conducted the experiments in January to see how well wearing a cloth mask over a three-ply medical procedure mask would work to reduce virus transmission.
They also looked into the effectiveness of knotting the ear loops of a surgical mask and then tucking the excess material close to the face.
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Experts found that both these methods helped reduce the exposure to the virus by more than 90% in laboratory simulations.
The experiment showed that medical mask blocked 42.0% of the particles from a simulated cough, and the cloth mask alone blocked 44.3%.
The double mask combination blocked 92.5% of the cough particles.
The CDC also simulated the spread of COVID-19 during breathing when one or both people are properly masked.
Users who wear double masking were protected by 82.2% and 62.9% with a snug fitting, knotted and tucked surgical mask.
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When both the source of the virus and the receiver wore double masks, the exposure can be minimized to 96.4% and 95.9%, respectively.
“The data underscore that a good, tight fit with no spaces around the sides or use of a second cloth mask to improve the fit of the first mask increases overall efficiency and reduces virus transmission risk,” the CDC said in its study.
