Why social distancing, masks work in virus fight
Experts weigh in on why masks, social distancing, work in virus fight
TEXARKANA — While misunderstandings abound about wearing masks and social distancing, hard science and recent studies support the argument that such measures help slow the spread of COVID-19. At root, a simple concept can explain these measures. Dr. Benjamin Neuman, a virologist and science professor at Texas A&M University-Texarkana, likens it to the Peanuts comic character Pig-Pen, forever surrounded by a cloud of dust and dirt.
Imagine yourself creating your own cloud of coronavirus as you talk and breathe, true whether symptomatic or asymptomatic.
First and foremost, you want to protect others from your cloud, and secondarily protect yourself from others.
As you move, respiratory droplets with the coronavirus typically extend outward as far as six feet. These droplets can be inhaled or taken in by other people, infecting them. Droplets hang in the air for several minutes and permeate the space where they’ve been released, an even greater problem indoors.
In a world where we are social and get in each other’s physical space, this spells trouble.
However, we have ways to mitigate the risks as we carry out the tasks of our daily lives. We may not eliminate the chances, but we can lessen them.
A mask can stop one’s droplets from reaching others. That’s the main reason to wear one, which more and more governments, in addition to businesses, either recommend or require to help curb COVID-19’s reach. Wearing a mask also affords the wearer some degree of protection from others’ droplets.
Social distancing provides the same sort of protection. It keeps us apart, to some degree, from other folks’ potential cloud of coronavirus.
Here are the facts to consider, as presented by two local experts with practical knowledge to share, one a scientist, the other a medical doctor.
Masks
Why wear them? It’s all in the talking — or the breathing.
“The basic idea is that mouths are grosser than we thought they were,” Neuman said. “We’re used to talking and listening to the words, but it’s the things that we can’t see that are coming to the forefront with COVID, because when you breathe or when you talk, you’re producing somewhere between 1,000 and 10,000 little tiny droplets of spit.”
That’s normal. It’s almost like a gas we emit, Neuman says. The drops are between 10 micrometers and 30 micrometers in size, big enough to contain viruses.
“Statistically, probably about one out of three of those coming out of a COVID-infected person will have at least one virus in it,” Neuman said.
They hang in the air and float around a room for 10 to 20 minutes, he said. “Like creamer would stir around inside of a cup of coffee if you just poured it in until it sort of dissipates,” Neuman said. “Anybody who breathes in air, like we do, would also be breathing in COVID if they’re not wearing a mask.”
A mask is excellent at catching about 90 percent of particles that are twice as big as a single virus, he said. Hence, masks will stop many of these respiratory droplets, depending on the type of mask or covering.
“The other thing that we know and that doesn’t often get talked about is that the amount of virus that you get is probably related to how sick you become,” Neuman said. This has also been seen in other animals, such as mice. Therefore, blocking the droplets as much as we can only makes sense.
“You block it from going out and you block it from coming in. It’s altruism and self-centeredness combined in a nice little package,” Neuman said.
Can masks make us sick? Not really. Studies conducted in hospitals looking at the effect of surgical masks on oxygen levels and stress in surgeons, for example, show that wearing the mask will at most cause about a 1% decrease in oxygen, Neuman says. In other situations, the variation can be greater, even when we sleep.
“The amount of difference is just negligible,” Neuman said about wearing a mask. He thinks the sensation can indeed make us uncomfortable at first, but the body adjusts. Putting on the mask can cause stress.
“We know that stress can lead to changes in oxygen level and how you feel, and just a lot of different processes,” Neuman said. We can get better at mask wearing by practicing or putting it on before you think you’ll need it so the body and brain adjust.
“It’s actually a lot more pleasant,” Neuman said.
His recommendation? Relax when you’re home, but keep your guard up when you’re out, he said. “Because the virus will get you when you’re not paying attention,” Neuman said. Watch out for situations where you feel less cautious.
Dr. Loren Robinson, CHRISTUS St. Michael Health System’s vice president for medical affairs, says masking allows you to breathe but also minimize the amount of those respiratory droplets that can infect others by entering their mouth or nose.
“When we talk about masking, you are wearing or individuals wear the mask to protect other people from them. We want universal masking so that everybody is protected,” Robinson said.
The idea is this: “My my mask protects you and your mask protects me,” she said. Also, do it correctly.
“It is very important for our masks or our facial coverings to cover your nose and your mouth, because those respiratory droplets from people coughing or singing or even sometimes breathing can enter your system through your nose or your mouth,” Robinson said.
Droplets have a range of about six feet, the distance they go before they fizzle and float to the ground, she said. That may not happen all the time, but that’s the average — hence the recommended spacing of at least six feet of distance between people.
About the idea that masks can make someone sick, Robinson says the masks out there are made from breathable material. Figuring out the best mask is a personal choice, perhaps dependent on the situation where you wear one. Consider this when deciding what mask to use.
“The thing is, people are going to have to figure out which mask works for them,” she said. “The most important thing is any facial covering is better than nothing at all.”
People wear medical masks, or there are masks sewn from different materials. Which one to use is a personal choice.
“I think that wearing a mask is something we all need to do, and that’s a really good way to prevent these droplets from spreading,” Robinson said. “Determining how comfortable you are and what type of mask is an individual experience.”
For someone with COPD or asthma, she suggests a medical mask may work because it has optimal air exchange. For someone without breathing issues, a thicker mask may work.
Social Distancing
Social distancing practices also help us avoid exposure and avoid exposing others. They go together.
“Social distancing seems to help a lot. This is another thing that’s hard to do. It’s hot outside and we tend to cluster indoors where the air conditioning is. I totally get that,” Neuman said. “The idea is that there’s going to be some leakage, even if you’re wearing mask.
“You block it (virus particles) from going out and you block it from coming in. It’s altruism and self-centeredness combined
in a nice little package.”
— Dr. Benjamin Neuman
“My mask protects you and
your mask protects me.”
—Dr. Loren
Robinson
So there’s going to be this little cloud of viruses that’s going to follow you around like the cloud followed PigPen around in Peanuts. It’s going to be there and you can’t see it.”
The idea is to keep people’s clouds apart and avoid other people’s coronavirus cloud as much as possible.
“Because you can’t see this thing, but it does cause a danger to health,” Neuman said.
In general, limit the amount of time indoors in the same room as another person. “Things like restaurants don’t really work for sit-in at the moment — at least I think the risks are very much unacceptable,” Neuman said. “Same thing for schools, for example — same thing for pretty much anything you would do indoors with a bunch of other people around.”
There’s leakage in these situations. People pull their masks down to their chin or adjust them, pulling it up and down. If you take enough risks, they catch up with you, and the risk is potentially great with COVID-19, Neuman said.
“And so easily avoidable,” he said.
The shorter the period of time indoors in such situations, the better, such as getting take-out. Or with getting groceries at the store, a risk someone must take to feed the family, Neuman said, people can use curbside in some situations. If going inside, limit contact and keep moving.
“It’s not a social outing,” Neuman said, noting he’s concerned about water parks, too. He said outbreaks have also been seen in daycare settings. Then again, he understands there are risks that people have to take, such as working.
Along with taking social distancing measures, Robinson also recommends proper hand hygiene. It’s still important because we touch so many things on a day-to-day basis. At a gas station, for example, she recommends really washing your hands.
If people use gloves, put on new ones for each new situation. Going into the grocery story? Put them on before entering and take them off when you leave.
“And one of the things about washing hands versus hand sanitizer is that washing your hands is a physical work-up of your hands. You’re touching more surfaces,” Robinson said. Compared to hand sanitizer, hand washing gets us into the crevices of our skin as we use vigorous action to clean.
In Texarkana, she senses more people are wearing masks since the statewide mask mandate started in Texas.
“We are a conscientious community where people really care about our town, our city. People care about making this a nice place to live and a safe place to live for everyone who’s here,” Robinson said.
She suspects more people didn’t wear masks before this past weekend because of the mixed messages from authorities. It’s confusing to get all those different messages.
But stores and companies in town are urging or requiring people to wear a mask, Robinson said, while people working at restaurants and elsewhere have worn masks for weeks, steps taken to keep them safe. We can help them stay safe by wearing a mask.
“I think it was good that the governor made the announcement that went into effect on (last) Friday, and more people are wearing masks,” Robinson said.