Most Studies Find Masks Don't Make Any Difference and There May Be an Explanation Now

When tested, masks actually look very effective. The website called Smartairfilters.com is a treasure trove of information about air filtration systems and masks. They clearly show the effectiveness of masks, even the cloth home-made ones. Some of the better masks filter out 99.7 percent of all particles. They used a "fit test" to get their results, which you can review here if you'd like.

With such convincing results, why do masks seem to be failing us? The paper entitled Masks Don't Work: A Review of Science Relevant to COVID-19 Social Policy may have the answer. They list numerous studies that all conclude that masks don't protect against contracting a whole host of illnesses. You can read the paper to see for yourself. 

Viruses are much smaller than bacteria. Coronaviruses are .1 microns in diameter. (1) Surgical masks only filter particles larger than 3 microns, and N95 masks are good down to .3 microns, so a false assumption is that they can't filter coronaviruses effectively, as they easily pass through the filter. (2)

But wait, there's more. Covid-19 viruses don't float around by themselves. Respiratory viruses like Covid-19 are exhaled in aerosols. Aerosols are small bits of fluid that are about 5 microns. (3) Aerosols behave like smoke particles. When something burns in the oven, the smell quickly permeates the entire home and lingers for hours. Gravity does not affect such small particles. They must mix and diffuse slowly as new fresh air enters the house. Similarly, aerosols remain airborne in high concentrations for hours. Surgical masks will filter out particles down to 3 microns, so they will filter out coronaviruses inside aerosols, provided they don't sneak around the sides. 

The viruses that masks do protect against have a high minimal infective dose or MID. The minimal infective dose equals the smallest number of germs delivered to the lungs within a specific time to cause illness. If you need a large number to cause disease, masks can work as a preventive aid.

On the other hand, if the MID is very small, a single aerosol particle can contain enough viruses to initiate illness. Scientists do not know the infectious dose of Covid-19. For influenza, studies have shown that just three virus particles are enough to make someone sick. (4) According to The American Council On Science and Health, "COVID-19 is clearly very contagious, but this may be because few particles are needed for infection (the infectious dose is low), or because infected people release a lot of virus in their environment".

Since aerosols carry Covid-19 and ALL masks allow them in, and the MID is probably small enough that only a few aerosol particles are enough to cause illness, masks seemingly make no difference. But this is just conjecture at the moment. Many other factors are involved in the spread of viral diseases. A weak immune system probably lowers the MID. Different routes of transmission besides inhalation may come into play. Certainly, having underlying medical conditions is a significant factor. Please read my post on that subject here if you want to know more on that subject. 

A healthy immune system is one of the best defenses against Covid-19. I am not advising you to stop wearing your mask if you are comfortable doing so, or the law says you should. I am only reporting the facts as they stand. My advice, as always, is that you get enough sleep, eat a nutrient-dense diet devoid of processed carbohydrates and seed oils, avoid sedentarism, surround yourself with friends and family (Covid-compliant, of course), get some sunshine, make sure your vitamin D level is OK, exercise, minimize stress and get lots of fresh air. After all, if enough Covid-19 viruses get into your lungs, and it seems likely they will, even when wearing a mask, your immune system is your only natural defense. You can use this quick-start guide if you need help figuring things out.