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Face masks established themselves early in the pandemic as an essential tool to mitigate the spread of COVID. Government advice varied significantly, but eventually settled on the idea that cloth masks are an effective and accessible option to protect yourself, your family and your community from the virus.

But with the rise of more transmissible variants such as Delta and Omicron, many experts have warned that these ubiquitous items may no longer meet the necessary standards of protection. Instead, respirators such as P2 masks have steadily grown in popularity.

Let's take a deep dive into cloth vs P2 masks to find out which is best to defend yourself and Australia at large from surging COVID cases.

Unfamiliar with P2 masks? While we tend to hear more about N95 and KN95 masks, P2 masks are actually the Australian standard of respirator mask and are extremely common Down Under. N95 masks are the American standard, and KN95 masks are the Chinese standard.

Beyond that, the 3 styles of mask are very similar. You can check out a full rundown of the differences between them here, but the bottom line is that all 3 filter out 94-95% of particles and are widely considered the optimal style of mask to combat the Omicron variant.

By far the most important factor when choosing your style of mask is to decipher which will be most effective in preventing the spread of COVID.

The answer to this question is clear. Respirator masks such as P2 masks offer a tighter fit than other kinds of masks, leading to far greater protection against the virus. Cloth masks lack layers of filtration and are too loose to offer this same level of protection.

While Australian governments have yet to come out and strongly favour respirators over other styles of face masks, many experts have. The OzSAGE Community Respirator and Mask Update Working Group, which features some of the leading experts in the field, has stated that "To minimise community transmission, cloth and surgical masks should be urgently replaced with respirators."

Data scientist Jeremy Howard told the ABC that the public should "Ditch your cloth masks and also ditch your surgical masks."

Overall, the evidence is pretty clear that if you want to do everything you can to protect yourself, your family and your community from Omicron, P2 masks are the way to go.

While effectiveness is by far the most important factor to mull over when selecting your style of mask, there are other things to take into consideration as well.

P2 masks don't always come cheap, so throwing them out after every use can harm your wallet as well as the environment. Fortunately, experts agree this practice isn't necessary. America's Centre for Disease Control states that healthcare workers can rotate used respirator masks in paper bags.

The coronavirus is believed to survive for 72 hours, so leaving a mask in a bag for a period of a few days means it will become safe to reuse. Since this practice is considered acceptable for healthcare settings, it's definitely good enough for the public.

So you don't have to shy away from using a P2 mask just because you love washing and reusing your cloth mask. Respirators like P2 masks can be reused until they are dirty, damaged or difficult to breathe through.

When bought in bulk, P2 masks are available for approximately $1-$3 per mask. It's less common to purchase cloth masks in bulk. Purchasing individual cloth masks can vary in cost from around $6 to around $50.

Since cloth masks are easier to reuse, you'll need to look at your personal situation to assess which option is more expensive over time for you and your family. But given the greater effectiveness of P2 masks, many Australians find any additional costs well worth it.

By design, P2 masks are more constrictive than their cloth counterparts, and many users have reported finding cloth masks more comfortable to wear. But again, as we all try to fend off the Omicron winter wave, the greater efficacy of P2 masks makes it an easy trade-off.

It can be a bit tricky for novices to figure out exactly how to use a P2 mask, but following the steps listed here should make things much easier.

On the whole, any drawbacks P2 masks might have are comprehensively outweighed by the expert consensus that they are far more effective than their cloth counterparts in combatting the spread of COVID. Find out where to purchase P2 and other respirator masks below.

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