What Will It Take for Masks and Face Shields to End?

Analysis by Dr. Joseph Mercola
October 09, 2020

https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2020/10/09/face-shield-and-mask.aspx

… Not wearing a mask in Ohio is considered a misdemeanor. Penalties for failure to comply can include up to 30 days in jail and a $750 fine. While DeWine said his intent isn’t to arrest people for noncompliance, he failed to veto a bill that would have reduced fines and banned jail time for noncompliance.

The fundamental problem with assaulting¹⁸ and arresting people for not complying with mask rules is that there’s no evidence to support the idea that masks prevent the spread of the virus. In fact, the science tells us masks cannot block viruses.

SARS-CoV-2 has a diameter between 0.06 and 0.14 microns.¹⁹ Medical N95 masks — which are considered the most effective — can filter particles as small as 0.3 microns.²⁰ Surgical masks, homemade masks, T-shirts and bandanas are even more porous.

At best, a mask may reduce the transmission of large respiratory droplets, but it does nothing to prevent the transmission of aerosolized particulates exhaled by asymptomatic or presymptomatic individuals with COVID-19.²¹ Health agencies’ own research show it’s a futile measure that only provides a false sense of security.

For example, the World Health Organization’s June 5, 2020, guidance memo²² on face mask use states “there is no direct evidence (from studies on COVID- 19 and in healthy people in the community) on the effectiveness of universal masking of healthy people in the community to prevent infection with respiratory viruses, including COVID-19.”

Similarly, a May 2020 policy review paper²³ published in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s journal, Emerging Infectious Diseases, concluded that “Our systematic review found no significant effect of face masks on transmission of laboratory-confirmed influenza.”

This is highly relevant, as the influenza virus is about twice the size of SARS-CoV-2. If masks cannot prevent transmission of influenza, they certainly cannot prevent transmission of SARS-CoV-2.

Continue…

https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2020/10/09/face-shield-and-mask.aspx