Catherine Clase @cmclase@social.cleverlibre.org

So...1 in 24 Canadians has Covid, XBB1.5 (kraken) variant is projected to be at 22% in Ontario by the end of the week, people are still dying of Covid (279 in Canada in the first week of January), and though voluntary mask wearing is low, 69% of Canadians support mask mandates if necessary.

Public health in many regions recommends or strongly recommends mask wearing.

But no mask mandates?
Not even in education and the workplace?
Nothing?

Mandates would make it so much easier for the caring majority to normalize wearing a mask again. Many people understandably don't want to #WearAMask unless it is clearly necessary. #MaskMandates are necessary to get mask wearing in public up to >80%, which IHME estimates would halve deaths from covid with a month.

In the absence of clear direction from public health, #MaskUp and protect yourself and those around you as best you can.

https://maskevidence.org/why-masks-matter

#SystemsApproaches #CovidIsAirborne #CovidIsNotOver #DoAllTheThings #ventilation #filtration #PaidSickDays #BringBackMasks #WearAMask #MasksSaveLives #MaskeAuf #MaskUp #MaskMandate #MaskMandateNow #CovidLong #LongCovid #BetterMasks

Tara Moriarty's lab's estimates of current infections and risk: https://twitter.com/MoriartyLab/status/1614737208602230784

Incomplete count of deaths from Covid in Canada: https://health-infobase.canada.ca/covid-19/current-situation.html?stat=num&measure=deaths_weekly&map=pt#a2

CTV/Nanos Nov 2022 poll of Canadians: https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/majority-of-canadians-support-return-of-face-masks-in-indoor-public-spaces-if-deemed-necessary-survey-1.6144419

IHME projections: https://covid19.healthdata.org/canada?view=daily-deaths&tab=trend

@holmesr@mastodon.online @Pat I didn't know that. In the early pandemic most frontline workers with access to N95s and no religious objections, were clean shaven for this reason.

@holmesr@mastodon.online @Pat

yes, that's correct. But at any level of stubble, the N95 is best.

You can't pass a fit test with stubble.

@holmesr@mastodon.online @Pat 3M

Should have been more specific: Aura 1870+ is the one with stretchable elastic

@holmesr@mastodon.online @Pat

Hi again. Thanks for the feedback and for engaging, much appreciated.

We think overhead elastic is critical to getting good fitted-filtration (ie, net filtration of a mask on a face). We summarize this here ⬇️

https://maskevidence.org/head-attachments

In North America, #N95s must have overhead elastic simplifying our advice in favour of these over #KN95 or #KF94

There are data on beards, too!

For a 10mm beard, an N95 is still more effective than all other masks.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41370-021-00337-1

If the stifling feeling is specifically associated with headstraps for you, they could be too tight. Aura 3M has simple band elastic straps that lengthen with a good hard tug. This is a pro in this situation for you.

For straps that don't lengthen so easily, consider an #N95 with braided elastic such as Vitacore's #Can99.

Vitacore's Can99 also has superb breathability so if the problem isn't the attachments, this might help.

Apologies for a N American reply to a European question.

Anyone curating info on #FFP2 or #FFP3 and suppliers please let me know: we would love to put this on our website.

#WearTheBestMaskAvailable

#COVID #BetterMasks #MaskUp #MaskMandates #Masks
#WearAMask #CovidIsNotOver #CovidIsntOver #BetterMasks #MaskUp #DoAllTheThings #ventilation #filtration #PaidSickDays #BringBackMasks #WearAMask #MasksSaveLives #MaskeAuf #MaskUp #MaskMandate #MaskMandateNow #CovidLong #LongCovid #Beards

@holmesr@mastodon.online

Hi! It sounds like you are still using the distinction at 5 microns between droplets and aerosols. This has been recognized as incorrect. Your 'droplet' that doesn't settle is more correctly described as an aerosol

https://www.wired.com/story/the-teeny-tiny-scientific-screwup-that-helped-covid-kill/