A Texas A&M professor did the research and he would like you to wear a face mask.
A study published by professor Renyi Zhang and his colleagues earlier this month suggests that face masks are significantly more effective in stopping the spread of the coronavirus between people than other prevention measures.
Zhang who studies atmospheric sciences and geosciences, showed coronavirus mainly spreads through airborne transmission of droplets from coughing or sneezing, but also from breathing or talking.
“Our evidence strongly suggests that face masks are the determinant factor to curb the spread of the pandemic,” Zhang said. “The face covering performs two functions. One is to protect the infected people from spreading the virus and the other is to protect uninfected people from inhaling the virus.”
The study looked at trends and prevention measures in three epicenters of the coronavirus pandemic: Wuhan, China; Italy; and New York City. Researchers found that mandatory face mask policies reduced the number of infections by more than 78,000 in Italy between April 6 and May 9, and by over 66,000 in New York City between April 17 and May 9.
The study also compared the rate of new infections in New York City and in the rest of the United States and found that not only did the rate of daily new infections in New York go down after face masks were made mandatory, the rate of infection in the rest of the country, where only social-distancing and stay-at-home measures were put in place, continued to climb.
Zhang explained that wearing a face mask is a crucial step because other studies have shown that the virus can travel more than 6 feet in the air and survive airborne for extended periods. That means social distancing alone is not enough to prevent spread. This is especially true in enclosed spaces like offices and grocery stores, he said, while spread in outdoor spaces is less likely because the virus will be diluted in the open air.
Everyone should wear a face mask because it is possible for an infected person to spread the virus before they show symptoms, Zhang said. Recent findings suggest that COVID-19, the disease linked to the coronavirus, is most contagious just before or right when a person’s symptoms begin.
“If you put on a face mask you will basically prevent the virus getting out and this is particularly important because there can be asymptomatic transmission,” Zhang said. “People can be infected and still feel well.”
Although Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s statewide executive orders, which supersede local orders, don’t require the wearing of face masks, Austin Mayor Steve Adler issued a local order on Wednesday mandating that all businesses in the city immediately come up with a plan to require facial coverings. Abbott gave his approval to a similar requirement in Bexar County.
COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have continued to rise across Texas and in Austin since the state began to reopen last month. State health officials reported more than 4,000 COVID-19 patients in Texas hospitals this week. Travis County has reported hundreds of new cases a day in recent weeks, including more than 500 new cases last Sunday.
Zhang said the most effective strategy to curb the spread of COVID-19 would be to combine face masks with other prevention measures, such as social distancing, hand washing and contract tracing, in which officials try to stop the spread by determining who has been in contact with an infected person.
However, he said without face masks, the other measures will not be sufficient to slow or stop the spread of the pandemic.
“Looking at China, they were able to almost completely contain the virus, so that means the disease is preventable. We just have to do the right thing,” he said. “This is not just one person’s problem. It’s all of us who have to do the right thing.”
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