DOH: Avoid cloth mask; no face mask for kids below 2
MANILA, Philippines — Department of Health (DOH) Undersecretary Maria Rosette Vergeire advised the public today to avoid using cloth face masks in view of rising cases of COVID-19 in the country.
DOH-TAG (Technical Advisory Group) member Dr. Anna Lisa Ong-Lim, however, said that if there is no medical grade mask or surgical mask, wearing two cloth masks could be a an option.
Meanwhile, DOH also advised parents not to put face masks on children younger than two years old, citing a possible choking hazard.
In a Palace briefing, Vergeire yesterday that a face shield will do if there is a need to go outside.
"May panganib na ma-choke o ma-strangulate ang bata 'pag nagsusuot ng face mask kaya hindi na muna natin sila pinagsusuot if they are younger than two years old," she said.
In a report published last September 2020 in the US journal "Physics of Fluids," researchers at Florida Atlantic University said people wearing only plastic face shields or masks fitted with a valve can spray invisible droplets over a very wide area when they sneeze or cough, making the devices ineffective at preventing coronavirus spread.
The face shield initially blocks the passage of the droplets as they move forwards, but "the expelled droplets can move around the visor with relative ease and spread out over a large area," the researchers said.
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