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CDC Study Finds Two Masks Are Better Than One Vs. COVID-19

Estudio: Usar 2 cubrebocas protege mejor contra el COVID-19

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. government researchers found that two masks are better than one in slowing coronavirus spread, but health officials stopped short of recommending that everyone double up.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday, February 10, reported the results of a lab experiment that spaced two artificial heads 6 feet from each other and checked to see how many coronavirus-sized particles spewed by one were inhaled by the other.

The researchers found that wearing one mask — surgical or cloth — blocked around 40% of the particles coming toward the head that was breathing in. When a cloth mask was worn on top of a surgical mask, about 80% were blocked.

When both the exhaling and inhaling heads were double-masked, more than 95% of the particles were blocked, said the CDC’s Dr. John Brooks.

Still, for now, health authorities acknowledge they have their hands full just trying to get more people to wear one mask and wear it correctly.

“The first challenge is to get as many as people as possible masking. And then for those that do mask, to help them get the best benefit out of that mask,” Brooks said.

Brooks said agency officials heard about people donning two masks and wanted to evaluate whether it was beneficial.

The study had many limitations: The researchers used one brand of surgical mask and one kind of cloth mask, and it’s not clear if results would be the same with every product. But it echoes some earlier research that suggests two masks are better than one.

“It works,” Brooks said.

The CDC updated its guidance, saying people can wear a cloth mask on top of a disposable surgical mask “for better fit and extra protection.” If done correctly, the combination can tighten the gaps around the mask’s edges that can let virus particles in, the CDC said.

Some Americans have already started doubling up. Experts believe that’s at least partly out of concern about new strains of coronavirus that have been found to spread more easily than the one that has driven the U.S. epidemic for the past year.

CDC guidance has evolved over the course of the epidemic.

When the COVID-19 crisis began and masks disappeared from store shelves, U.S. health officials actively discouraged the general public from wearing them. “Seriously people – STOP BUYING MASKS!” then-Surgeon General Jerome Adams wrote in a tweet almost a year ago.

Two months later, after it became clear that infected people who did not exhibit symptoms could spread the virus, the CDC began recommending people wear masks in public.

Mask-wearing increased and some places enforced mask mandates, but many Americans continue not to wear them. A recent University of California survey suggested that only about half of U.S. adults wear masks when in close contact with people outside their household.

ESPAÑOL:

NUEVA YORK (AP) — Investigadores del gobierno estadounidense concluyeron que usar dos mascarillas es mejor que una para frenar la propagación del COVID-19, pero las autoridades de salud no recomendaron su uso generalizado.

Los Centros para el Control y la Prevención de Enfermedades de Estados Unidos (CDC, por sus siglas en inglés) informaron el miércoles, 10 de febrero, los resultados de un experimento de laboratorio que separó dos cabezas artificiales a casi 2 metros (6 pies) entre sí para verificar cuántas partículas del tamaño del coronavirus, arrojadas por una, fueron inhaladas por la otra.

Los investigadores encontraron que usar un cubrebocas quirúrgico o de tela bloqueaba un 40% de las partículas que se dirigían hacia la cabeza que estaba inhalando. Cuando se usaba una mascarilla de tela encima de una quirúrgica, se bloqueaba hasta un 80% de las partículas.

Si ambas cabezas tenían doble mascarilla, se bloqueaba más del 95% de las partículas, dijo el Dr. John Brooks de los CDC.

“El primer reto es conseguir que la mayor cantidad de gente posible use cubrebocas y, para quienes los usan, es ayudarlos a obtener el mejor beneficio”, dijo Brooks.

El estudio tuvo muchas limitaciones: los investigadores utilizaron una marca de mascarilla quirúrgica y un tipo de mascarilla de tela, y no está claro si los resultados serían los mismos con todos los productos, pero el estudio hace eco de investigaciones anteriores que indican que dos mascarillas son mejores que una o que ninguna.

Algunos estadounidenses ya han comenzado a usar doble cubrebocas. Los expertos creen que eso se debe, al menos en parte, a la preocupación por las nuevas cepas que se han descubierto y que se propagan con más facilidad.

Las recomendaciones de las autoridades de salud han evolucionado a lo largo de la pandemia.

Cuando comenzó la crisis del COVID-19 y las mascarillas desaparecieron de las tiendas, las autoridades desaconsejaron su uso. “En serio gente, ¡DEJEN DE COMPRAR MASCARILLAS!”, tuiteó hace casi un año el entonces director de salud pública de Estados Unidos, Jerome Adams.

Dos meses más tarde, después de que quedó claro que las personas infectadas que no presentaban síntomas podían propagar el virus, los CDC comenzaron a recomendar que las personas usaran mascarillas en público.

El uso del cubrebocas aumentó y en algunos lugares son obligatorios, pero muchos estadounidenses continúan sin usarlos.

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