Health officials urge people to wear mask over mouth and nose
Because this is something we still have to tell people for some reason.
(Image via CDC, Graphic by Solano News Update)
Solano County health officials on Tuesday issued a reminder to members of the community that face masks worn to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus are not effective if people do not completely cover their mouths and noses.
“COVID-19 virus particles can enter and be spread from your mouth AND nose, so it’s important to keep both covered,” a public health official wrote in a Facebook post.
While it may be uncomfortable to wear a mask over the mouth and nose for a prolonged period of time, health experts have said in the past that covering the nose is a critical step in preventing the spread of COVID-19 because viral particulates can become trapped in the nasal passageway if breathed in, which puts individuals at a higher risk of becoming infected:
Researchers at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill mapped locations in the respiratory tract to see where COVID-19 most likely infiltrates the body and found the cells that line the nose were significantly more likely to become infected and spread virus than the throat or lungs.
In addition, they said that part of the reason you could be more likely to get infected through the nose is because COVID-19 infects cells with tiny hairs on them called cilia, which usually helps protects from pathogens. [Source]
“The nose is basically the purveyor of all viral ill,” Dr. Richard Boucher, a medical expert at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, told ABC News in an interview. “The virus appear[s] to pick the nose as a fertile ground for infection.”
State health regulations require the use of a cloth, medical or other type of mask that adequately covers the nose and mouth in nearly all situations outside of one’s home, including when they patron businesses with indoor or outdoor services. County officials said people should keep their masks on when they talk with other people instead of pulling them down, which some habitually do.
“This defeats the purpose and increases the risk of spreading COVID-19 to others,” Solano officials said.
For more information on how to properly wear a mask, visit the CDC’s website by clicking or tapping here.
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