Some friends will think [there is nothing worth saying about wearing a broken mask], but don’t think so. This inconspicuous little thing has made great contributions to human health.
Doctors often wear masks. They need to wear masks when visiting tuberculosis patients. Friends in areas with poor air quality often wear masks. Everyone wears masks during SARS.
Although masks are a common thing that everyone can afford to wear, not everyone can wear them. The following doctor clove will tell you about the health knowledge of wearing masks to help you prevent various diseases.
Mask has a long history and is a great invention.
The history of masks can be traced back to BC, when [masks] were only decorations that others could not recognize and prevent halitosis…
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In 1895, German pathologist Ledec believed that saliva with bacteria when people spoke would worsen wounds. Therefore, doctors were advised to wear a mask made of gauze that can cover their nose and mouth when operating.
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In this way, masks have gradually become [sharp tools for preventing diseases] from decoration.
Wearing masks can prevent many diseases.
People often say that [diseases come from the mouth]. In fact, many diseases come from the nose, such as tuberculosis, influenza, SARS, measles, rubella, chickenpox, mumps, scarlet fever, epidemic meningitis, diphtheria, whooping cough, pulmonary hemorrhagic fever…
In addition to the above respiratory infectious diseases, pneumoconiosis, allergic rhinitis, organic solvent poisoning, etc. are also [diseases enter from the nose].
As the [gatekeeper] of respiratory tract, mask can filter pathogenic bacteria, pollen, harmful particles, etc., thus achieving the effect of preventing various diseases.
Wearing masks is an important means to prevent tuberculosis.
Among the many diseases that masks can prevent, tuberculosis is very representative.
Infectious tuberculosis patients may excrete droplets containing tuberculosis bacteria when coughing, expectorating, sneezing or talking loudly, and healthy people may be infected after inhaling.
And it is no exaggeration to say that tuberculosis is around you, me and him: about 20% of the people in China have tuberculosis infection, and about 1.2 million people suffer from tuberculosis.
However, the elderly, diabetes, etc. are more likely to become victims of tuberculosis due to low immune function.
Therefore, it is very important to master the correct use method of masks. Even if wearing masks cannot 100% prevent tuberculosis and other diseases, it can also reduce the possibility of illness.
Wearing a mask without paying attention to methods is equivalent to wearing it for nothing.
The function of masks is to filter harmful substances, and the quality and wearing method of masks will affect the filtering effect. The following are the problems to be paid attention to when wearing masks:
1. When to Wear a Mask
There is no clear study showing that [wearing masks for a long time is not good for health], but it is generally recommended to wear masks only when necessary:
- Patients with infectious tuberculosis or other respiratory infectious diseases should take the initiative to wear masks to avoid infecting bacteria to others when coughing and talking loudly. When contacting or caring for family members of tuberculosis or other infectious diseases, they should also wear masks. During the epidemic period of respiratory infectious diseases such as influenza, masks should be worn when going to public places such as stations and shopping malls. When the breath quality is poor, such as severe smog and heavy dust.
2. Pay attention to the type of mask
There are many masks on the market. The common ones are cotton masks, medical surgical masks and N95 masks. Their filtering effects are different.
General cotton mask: It has certain dustproof and cold-proof effects, but basically does not have the effect of preventing infectious diseases.
Medical surgical mask: breathable, dust-resistant, water-resistant, light in weight, mainly used to prevent splashing liquid and spray from contacting oral cavity and nasal cavity. Patients with infectious respiratory infectious diseases such as tuberculosis can wear medical surgical masks, but visiting patients’ families should try to choose N95 masks.
N95 mask: The disease prevention effect and smog prevention effect are better than those of medical surgical masks. However, the respiratory resistance is relatively high when wearing, and it is not recommended for pregnant women or friends with respiratory diseases to wear it, nor is it recommended to wear it for a long time.
3. Four Details to Pay Attention to when Wearing Masks
Wash hands before wearing
Wash your hands before wearing the mask or avoid touching the inner side of the mask during wearing the mask to reduce the possibility of contamination of the mask.
Distinguish between inside and outside, up and down
General medical masks from the outside to the inside, water-blocking layer, filter layer, moisture absorption layer, play a different role, so pay attention to the inner and outer layers. Don’t wear reverse, also can’t take turns to wear both sides. At the same time, attention should be paid to the upper and lower sides of the mask, the upper side is a shaping nose strip, which can increase the fit between the mask and the face and improve the filtering effect.
Check for fit
After wearing the mask, it should completely cover the nose, mouth and chin. For N95 and other medical protective masks, it can be judged by whether the eye lenses are foggy and whether the mask leaks air around the mask. The better the mask fits the face, the better the protective effect.
Don’t wear it for long
Both disposable medical surgical masks and N95 need to be replaced regularly and cannot be worn for a long time.
Wearing a mask is like a barrier, which is a simple and easy way to prevent harmful bacteria such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis from invading health.
While emphasizing the role of masks, I hope everyone will not forget to eat a balanced diet, work and rest regularly, exercise properly, and improve their own immune function. Only in this way can respiratory infectious diseases such as tuberculosis be kept away from us.