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It's time to upgrade your mask with options redesigned for higher safety standards.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) revised its mask guidelines again this week, requiring all Americans to re-wear masks in indoor public places and crowded outdoor areas, regardless of vaccination status.

The agency’s new mask recommendation was made as the Delta strain of the COVID-19 virus continues to spread, leading to an increase in new coronavirus cases across the United States. As the vaccine is still under observation in trials for children under 12 years of age, CDC officials have also updated the guidelines to require all students in grades K-12 to wear masks when they are in school this fall.

Delta variants are more contagious than other forms of SARS-CoV-2, which is the virus behind the spread of COVID-19. According to newly emerging data, people infected with this strain may carry 1,000 times more viral airborne particles in the airways than people infected with earlier strains. Although vaccines can prevent most or all of the fatal symptoms associated with the COVID-19 disease, CDC officials have recently admitted that people who are vaccinated can indeed spread the disease to others around them.

Vivek Cherian, MD, an affiliated physician at the University of Maryland, explained: “The best advice is to continue to wear a mask to protect your loved ones and yourself from COVID as an extra layer of protection regardless of the vaccination situation.” Medical system.

However, if you are still wearing masks that you rushed to buy (or even sew yourself) in the first few months of the pandemic, it is important to know that these masks may not be as protective as the other options now available.

The cloth masks produced in the first half of 2020 were not as strictly designed as they are now. It was not until the end of 2020 and early 2021 that CDC officials began to make more stringent mask recommendations to Americans (for example, in January, when officials asked Americans to consider double shielding) . Although cloth masks are definitely better than no masks in preventing the spread of COVID-19, the fit and structure of medical-grade surgical masks are usually more comprehensive-currently, consumers can easily obtain them.

Lexie Sachs, director of the Good Housekeeping Institute Textiles, said that surgical masks are usually made by PPE manufacturers who adhere to strict quality standards that have been in place long since the pandemic began. "We know that they are generally safer in terms of filtering and fitting," Sachs adds, which is in contrast to cloth masks made by fashion retailers, which generally do not meet building medical standards. "They are also usually more breathable."

Most importantly, you can rest assured that the medical-grade surgical mask you are wearing has been tested and meets the standards set by ASTM International. ASTM International is an industry organization responsible for setting minimum safety requirements for many products including masks. "You will know whether it has been tested to meet the standard-in this case, ASTM grade 3 and more-instead of blindly guessing about most fabric options," Sachs added.

There are also N95 and KN95 masks, also called respirators, which are known to be more protective than surgical masks. Why? Because they are carefully designed to prevent large and small particles in the air from penetrating the front of the mask. Officials from the Mayo Clinic clarified that although surgical masks do provide the same or better filtering capacity as cloth masks, their main purpose is to prevent fluids and sprays from falling on the wearer in the clinical environment, not particles. Or aerosol.

Although N95 and KN95 masks were basically unavailable at the beginning of the pandemic—and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials still insist that the supply of PPE in key categories such as respirators is very low—but now available More respirator masks than in the past are at the beginning of the outbreak.

In fact, former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb recently suggested that Americans consider wearing N95 or KN95 masks from China to best protect themselves from exposure to COVID-19 in public. Gottlieb told the CBS reporter: "If you plan to consider wearing a mask, the quality of the mask is really important." "So, if you can get a KN95 mask or N95 mask, it will provide you with more protection."

"There is no doubt that [respirators] provide the best protection because they fit more firmly, and if you can hold these masks, they can also provide high filtration capabilities," Dr. Cherian explained. "However, cloth masks are still an effective option [if you can't find a respirator]."

Since N95 is classified as a respirator, you need to fit them tightly to your nose and mouth to ensure proper filtration and effectiveness. Product manufacturers usually provide instructions for mask wearers to ensure that they use N95 or KN95 correctly, but depending on the respirator you choose, it may be more difficult to wear masks correctly. Charles CJ Bailey, MD, explains that he is an infectious disease expert in California Providence Mission Hospital.

Because they fit so well, Dr. Bailey and other experts warned children not to use N95 or KN95. Respirators are more difficult to breathe than medical masks or cloth masks, which is especially challenging for children in active environments or sports activities. Surgical masks are more suitable for children, especially those with respiratory problems or particularly active children. N95 or KN95 masks are not suitable.

Dr. Bailey added that getting children to wear N95 or KN95 that fits perfectly will be an unrealistic challenge, and wearing a respirator that does not fit will not provide any additional protection over other mask options (the same is true for adults!). Remember: CDC officials still recommend that any children under the age of two do not wear all masks at this time, including those who already have respiratory diseases that may make masks harmful.

Sachs says that if you are still using cloth masks purchased in 2020, it may be time to consider replacing them with respirators or surgical masks — or at least newer cloth masks. “The shelf life of cloth masks usually depends on the number of washes, and brands that meet ASTM standards should tell customers this information,” she added.

The new ASTM international standard-called ASTM F3502, will be showcased by manufacturers who design and test their products to meet these quality benchmarks-aims to provide designers and lifestyle brands with more directions to create safer non-PPE cloth masks . These standards ensure that the mask can properly fit your nose and mouth, can effectively filter particles in the air, and has reasonable breathability for consumers. The Unicorn breathing mask is an example of a cloth mask that claims to have been tested and manufactured in accordance with ASTM standards-you will see clear language on the brand's digital storefront to indicate this.

Manufacturers are slowly adjusting the way they make masks to meet the standards set by ASTM; Sachs explained that if your favorite mask does not show any ASTM F3502 classification, it may be that the mask is not sufficiently protective to meet the requirements.

It is better to buy a new mask instead of trying to repair a torn or elongated mask. If anything is clear, it is that the investment in correctly constructed masks will eventually pay off—the current CDC guidelines seem to be in place until all children are eligible for vaccination, and possibly until the vast majority of Americans choose Sign up for vaccinations.

Update August 2, 2021: This article has been updated to include cloth face masks that conform to ASTM F3502, which is the set of recently developed standards highlighted above. This article initially emphasized a mask that meets the ASTM F2100 standard, which is the standard used in the production of medical masks. As more information about the coronavirus pandemic develops, some of the information in this story may have changed since the last update. For the latest information on COVID-19, please visit online resources provided by the CDC, WHO, and your local public health department.