Research Guides: COVID-19: Face Masks

Face Masks & COVID-19

Face masks have becoming a point of contention for many individuals. This recommendation is not a novel idea, as it was used in the past during the Spanish Flu outbreak.

Some individuals contest that the use of a face mask increases CO2 levels in the body. According to the CDC, "Cloth masks and surgical masks do not provide an airtight fit across the face. The CO2 escapes into the air through the mask when you breathe out or talk. CO2 molecules are small enough to easily pass through mask material. In contrast, the respiratory droplets that carry the virus that causes COVID-19 are much larger than CO2, so they cannot pass as easily through a properly designed and properly worn mask."

Face Mask Information & Statistics

Evidence shows that, yes, masks prevent COVID-19 – and surgical masks are the way to go
Do masks work? And if so, should you reach for an N95, a surgical mask, a cloth mask or a gaiter?
Face Masks for Children During COVID-19
Masks remain a simple but powerful tool to protect against COVID-19, especially for children too young to get the vaccine yet. Read this for answers to some frequently asked questions about masks and children during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Your Guide to Face Masks
CDC guidelines and recommendations on wearing a face mask during the COVID-19 pandemic.

How Masks Work

Research Articles (University Log-in Required)

Airborne transmission of COVID-19 and the role of face mask to prevent it: a systematic review and meta-analysis
In conclusion, this meta-analysis suggests that there is association between face mask use and reduction of COVID-19. However, COVID-19 spreads primarily with contact routes and respiratory droplets, but its transmissibility has many mysteries yet and there is controversy about airborne transmission of COVID-19.
Association of social distancing and face mask use with risk of COVID-19
Given the continued burden of COVID-19 worldwide, there is a high unmet need for data on the effect of social distancing and face mask use to mitigate the risk of COVID-19. We examined the association of community-level social distancing measures and individual face mask use with risk of predicted COVID-19 in a large prospective U.S. cohort study of 198,077 participants. Individuals living in communities with the greatest social distancing had a 31% lower risk of predicted COVID-19 compared with those living in communities with poor social distancing. Self-reported 'always' use of face mask was associated with a 62% reduced risk of predicted COVID-19 even among individuals living in a community with poor social distancing. These findings provide support for the efficacy of mask-wearing even in settings of poor social distancing in reducing COVID-19 transmission. Despite mass vaccination campaigns in many parts of the world, continued efforts at social distancing and face mask use remain critically important in reducing the spread of COVID-19.
When face masks signal social identity: Explaining the deep face-mask divide during the COVID-19 pandemic
With the COVID-19 pandemic still raging and the vaccination program still rolling out, there continues to be an immediate need for public health officials to better understand the mechanisms behind the deep and perpetual divide over face masks in America. Using a random sample of Americans (N = 615), following a pre-registered experimental design and analysis plan, we first demonstrated that mask wearers were not innately more cooperative as individuals than non-mask wearers in the Prisoners' Dilemma (PD) game when information about their own and the other person's mask usage was not salient. However, we found strong evidence of in-group favouritism among both mask and non-mask wearers when information about the other partner's mask usage was known. Non-mask wearers were 23 percentage points less likely to cooperate than mask wearers when facing a mask-wearing partner, and 26 percentage points more likely to cooperate than mask wearers when facing a non-mask-wearing partner. Our analysis suggests social identity effects as the primary reason behind people's decision whether to wear face masks during the pandemic.