By Max Williams
Kansas City, Mo
Last week on Avila covid conversations, we talked about all the different types of vaccines and how they have helped or not helped against Covid 19. The three main vaccines were Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson and Johnson.
We also looked at the different numbers and different facts about which vaccine was the best. Again, I personally think the Pfizer is the best since it has the best immunity rate than the other two vaccines and does not have a blood clots issue like Johnson and Johnson vaccine shot.
However, in this week's conversation, we are going to look at how different masks have helped the decrease in Covid 19 and others getting sick. Now there are a couple types of masks to keep in mind.
First, there are the surgical masks, otherwise known as medical masks. These masks are made as loose fit and are disposable. They also are suppose to help with droplets coming down producing germs and other bad chemicals.
Other factor about the surgical masks is that according to ennomotive, they mentioned that for "single use filters are used in addition to reusable masks, the amount of waste is 60% less than using single-use masks." https://www.ennomotive.com/types-of-masks-covid-19
I think that is important to highlight since wanting to help reuse and try to protect our environment is very important. Also, it shows that people should look at getting some filters for your mask in which can help your respiration and how you breathe.
" I prefer the standard medical masks. I received a surplus of them months ago through my job, so I've always had plenty on hand," RA Lexi Comparto said.
The second type of mask which is popular against Covid are the fabric or cloth masks. These masks help with trapping any droplets released when someone is sneezes, coughs or talks out loud. These masks also help reduce different viruses really quickly.
However, though these masks need to be washed fairly often because of it getting dirty or wet from inside the mask. So as the main mask wearer it is important that you do not touch your face a lot because it could cause the issue of not keeping your mask clean.
One of my high school friends said," I prefer wearing the cloth masks because they feel super comfortable to me and have a natural fit overall," Brady Derossa said.
Again, cloth masks are good at protecting a type of new or existing bacteria from entering into our systems. However, are these type of masks the best protection against Covid 19?
I personally believe that the N95 masks are the best protection against the virus. Even though I usually wear the cloth masks and the medical masks more often, I think the N95 masks are better mask for a couple of reasons
One because this mask can help filter small and large particles better than both medical and cloth masks. According to Loma Linda University Health, they mentioned that again why N95 are called this name is because they block "95% of particles or liquids that may come in contact with your face."
Another reason why N95 masks are effective is that they are used in healthcare and hospital related activities. I think this can help healthcare workers be protected against their patients and possibly being more exposed to the virus.
However, these masks are only used for healthcare individuals and not for the general public. So, should we distribute these type of masks out to the public? What other harms do N95 masks have than cloth and surgical masks?
One student here at Avila also agrees with the logic behind N95 masks and they function.
"Even though the most popular choice would be the cloth masks, which I wear myself, the best types of masks are N95 to me," Garrett Tipton '25 said.
Now there are some type of ski masks which people do wear as well. These masks cover most of your face and they again help block out any unnecessary particles out of your system. Also, they can help with also to ski and snowboarding as well if you didn't know already.
"I feel the ski mask would be best when it comes to Covid 19 because you have multiple ways to filter the particles out," Dennis Johnson '23 said.
Overall, all these types of masks are effective in trying to control the virus. It basically comes down to which one you prefer and learn more about it. The two most popular ones again are the cloth and medical masks for everyday public.
But like I mentioned before, it is our job to mask up still and stay away from people as much as possible. Again, the more people keep masking up indoors and maybe outdoors, the spread of Covid 19 will decrease and be done. So please mask up and be aware of all the types of masks you can wear to help protect yourself.
Tune in to next time on Avila: Covid Conversations with your author Max Williams.
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