NEWS | July 6, 2020
UC Davis experts: Science says wearing masks and social distancing slow COVID-19 (VIDEO)
Ample research on how the coronavirus spreads shows masks are crucial protection
Scientific evidence is clear: Social distancing and wearing a mask help prevent people from spreading COVID-19, and masks also protect wearers from being infected themselves, two UC Davis Health experts said on UC Davis LIVE: COVID-19.
Along with preventing someone from transmitting the coronavirus, a range of new shows that the risk of infection to the wearer is decreased by 65%, said Dean Blumberg, chief of pediatric infectious diseases at UC Davis Children’s Hospital.
“On the issue of masks, I’d like to restart because we’ve learned a lot,” Blumberg said. “We’ve learned more due to research and additional scientific evidence. What we know now is that masks work and are very important.”
Blumberg and
William Ristenpart, a professor of chemical engineering in the UC Davis
College of Engineering, answered questions from viewers on a July 2 UC Davis LIVE devoted to explaining how the virus spreads and how to prevent transmission.
The point they made over and over was that research continues to support the fundamental methods to prevent spreading COVID-19: Wear masks, maintain social distance, keep social interactions outdoors whenever possible.
Transmission by droplets
There are two primary methods of transmission, they said. First is via droplets a carrier expels, which are about one-third the size of a human hair but still large enough that we can see them. They fly through the air until gravity pulls them down. The maximum distance of that flight is about 6 feet, which is why social distancing is so important.
Masks create an effective barrier against droplets – protecting both the wearer and people around them, they said.
“You’re being an irresponsible member of the community if you’re not wearing a mask. It’s like double dipping in the guacamole. You’re not being nice to others.”
— Dean Blumberg
“Everyone should wear a mask,” Blumberg said. “People who say ‘I don’t believe masks work’ are ignoring scientific evidence. It’s not a belief system. It’s like saying, ‘I don’t believe in gravity.’
“People who don’t wear a mask increase the risk of transmission to everyone, not just the people they come into contact with,” he said. “It’s all the people those people will have contact with. You’re being an irresponsible member of the community if you’re not wearing a mask. It’s like double dipping in the guacamole. You’re not being nice to others.”