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Masks help against #coronavirus, but confusing government advice and cultural misgivings may have limited the West’s acceptance and use of face covering during the #COVID19 pandemic. Our report via @WSJ https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601
Researchers/politicians who advocate simple cloth/paper masks as cheap and effective protection against the spread of #COVID19 say early cacophony in official advice —as well as deeper cultural factors—has hampered general adoption https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?st=d5quz75lmsc610g&reflink=article_copyURL_share
In the U.S., questions over wearing face masks have fueled heated political debates and protests. The chief health officer in Orange County, Calif., recently resigned after receiving death threats for ordering mask-wearing outside. https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?st=jtk7ocf2ljn1a0b&reflink=article_copyURL_share
Male vanity also appears to be a powerful factor in rejecting masks. A study found that more men than women agreed that wearing a mask is “shameful, not cool, a sign of weakness, and a stigma.” https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?st=8d6sfycxjcqenlu&reflink=article_copyURL_share
When #COVID19 spread to the West, key healthcare institutions such as @WHO, @CDCgov, @Surgeon_General & @rki_de argued against widespread use of masks outside hospitals. Some experts dismissed simple masks that don’t stop viruses as dangerous https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?st=gtiapggi9fmyhw0&reflink=article_copyURL_share
The @WhiteHouse adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci admitted this month that he initially dismissed masks because medical workers were facing a shortage in supplies. He, too, is now an advocate. https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?shareToken=st5f8a4c62d903478199eab4b5febd21fe
Chancellor Angela Merkel, a scientist by training, doesn’t use a mask in public. President Trump has recommended masks but said he won’t wear one. https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?shareToken=st7d170af27d3a45de8d048030149f6ead
Dr. @Karl_Lauterbach, a German epidemiologist and legislator, said that in a culture of optimizing appearance acceptance of masks is low "even as every medicine student learns that masks prevent infection," https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?shareToken=st7d170af27d3a45de8d048030149f6ead
“Naturally there is a lack of trust in health-care experts now, especially about masks,” said @jeremyphoward, a medical data scientist at the University of San Francisco who runs the #Masks4All campaign. https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?shareToken=st7d170af27d3a45de8d048030149f6ead
In Asia, the majority of people voluntarily use face coverings and it is mainly Western expatriates who are reluctant to adopt them, said Prof. Yuen Kwok-Yung, a leading #coronavirus expert who advises the Hong Kong government. https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?shareToken=st99f6256bc9624582bcfa18ab297154cc
Hong Kong, one of the most densely populated places on earth, recorded only 6 deaths from #COVID19 despite no lockdown and nearly 3m travelers a day from abroad, around half of them from mainland China, where the virus originated https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?shareToken=st5aacc94023734ef0ba1a0b86aa7407f9
The key secret of HongKong’s success, Prof. Yuen said, is that the mask compliance rate during morning rush hour is 97%. The 3% who don’t comply are mainly Americans and Europeans. “The only thing you can do is universal masking, that’s what stopped it" https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?shareToken=st5aacc94023734ef0ba1a0b86aa7407f9
Masks as disease prevention tools go back to the plague doctors of the MiddleAges; surgical masks were first used in 19th-century Germany. They were improved on and popularized in Asia by Dr. Wu Lien-teh during the Manchurian Plague epidemic of 1910-1911 https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?shareToken=st6f8d78099d154c919f94aff28768343b
Czechia was the first #EU country to impose mandatory mask-wearing in some public spaces on March 18, before it recorded the first death by #COVID19. It reduced the number of daily new infections to below 50 & has one of the lowest #coronavirus death rates https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?shareToken=st6f8d78099d154c919f94aff28768343b
“This is a respiratory disease, and covering your mouth and nose prevents it from spreading.” said the mayor of Jena who imposed a masking order on April 6. Less than a month later, it was free of #coronavirus. Last week, the town had one #Covid19 case https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?shareToken=st6f8d78099d154c919f94aff28768343b
“I am fully aware that masks are alien to our culture,” said Austria’s Chancellor @sebastiankurz in April, as he pleaded with citizens to embrace mask-wearing. Like his Czech counterpart @AndrejBabis, he wore one in public and during press conferences. https://www.wsj.com/articles/masks-could-help-stop-coronavirus-so-why-are-they-still-controversial-11593336601?shareToken=st41cc18289e854ca98ebb5b24ca951e2b
