With the arrival of the cold weather, some people may think, driven by practicality and comfort, that wearing a scarf or handkerchief covering their mouth and nose is more than enough of a barrier to stop the spread of the covid pandemic.19
And, of course, nothing could be further from the truth.
Scarves have been shown to reduce the risk of infection by only 44 percent, and this rate drops considerably with continued use. It has been calculated that after 20 minutes of use, their effectiveness drops to 24%, half of what it was initially.
Likewise, the use of a handkerchief as a virological barrier only contributes to reducing the spread of droplets by half.
Having said that, we at Biosalud continue to call for common sense and ask the population not to abandon the habit of wearing a mask while the pandemic lasts.