Why Is It Common To See People Wearing Surgical Masks In Asian Countries?
In parts of China, Korea and Japan it is very common to see people wearing surgical masks out in public, or in the workplace. Are they simply hypochondriacs, or do they have good reason to wear masks? A better question might be, do the masks actually work as intended?
Why Do They Wear The Masks?
Contrary to widespread belief, these masks aren’t worn to protect the wearer – they’re worn to protect others. When used during surgery, they prevent bacteria, viruses and germs from the staff’s mouth & nose from entering a patient’s (open or exposed) body.
In many Asian countries, even parts that aren’t heavily populated, it’s common for people to wear the masks if they think they’re getting sick, are sick, or even have a slight cold. They do this as a courtesy to prevent spreading their own infection to others.
The reason the flu and colds are so transmissible is because when you cough, sneeze, or blow your nose, there are millions of little viruses on the droplets in the fine mist you’ve just expelled into the air. Mist which can be inhaled by people around you – if you’ve just blown your nose and opened a door, touched a table, elevator button, or payphone – someone else can touch those objects and then rub their eyes – it’s quick and efficient transmission.
The surgical masks help to mitigate or stop the spray of virus-containing moisture from getting very far.
Do They Completely Stop Viruses?
Unfortunately, no. To completely block or contain viruses, an N95/N99/N100 rated mask is required to reliably catch particles that are as small as viruses and bacteria.
Luckily, most of the time when viruses or bacteria are aerosolized through coughing or sneezing, they are riding on water droplets much larger than the size of an individual virus or bacteria. Regular surgical masks are generally sufficient for blocking these.
References:
Johnson Flu Mask Study (PDF)
Health and Safety Laboratory (PDF)
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I can assure you that Chinese do it to protect THEMSELVES, not to protect others…
Well great, while they are protecting themselves they are also stopping what ever bacteria they have from spreading to others. Who cares if they are protecting THEMSELVES.. Good for them, I am about protecting MYSELF as well!
I’m sorry, but in Japan at least, this is not the case for the majority of people. While true for some, other reasons include not wanting to get sick, trying to prevent allergens (pollen) from reaching the airways, not having had time to put on makeup, being unhappy about how you look, and to inhibit social interaction. The number of people who wear masks outnumbers the number of sick people by at least 300% in my humble estimation.
Japan & Taiwan: they probably wear it like you said.
China: They want to protect from air pollution. Supposedly 20 of the 30 cities with the most polluted air are located in China.
Don’t categorize and stereotype Asia as one big clump. There’s more Asians than there are in North America and Europe: North & South Korean 73 million, Japan 126 million, China 1.34 billion V.S. Europe 595 million, USA 309 million, Rest of North America 229 million.
Soft surgical masks work well while outside in very cold weather, like sub-zero. Lowered immune system function can also be a reason for people to wear masks. People wearing masks are unable to talk loud on their cell phones.
Then they should learn to wash their hands & stop picking their noses too! I moved to Temple City CA, work in Arcadia 50% Chinese & I’ve never seen more nose picking in public in my life! It’s disgusting! I rarely see one wash their hands upon exiting the restroom either!