Late last night, the New Yorker Public health recommendations “If you are elderly or have heart or respiratory problems and need to go out, please wear a good quality mask (such as N95 or KN95),” city officials said in a statement.
It was very familiar advice in a way, but also not quite so. This threat is neither viral nor infectious. Instead, masks are recommended as a precaution against the thick, choking fumes from Canada, where wildfires have been burning for weeks. Recent US regions targeted include the Midwest, Ohio Valley, Northeast, and Mid-Atlantic.
In a word, the situation is bad. The record was set yesterday in New Haven, Connecticut. Worst air quality readings on recordin parts of New York and Pennsylvania, some towns These are covered in levels of contaminants that the Environmental Protection Agency considers “harmful” and have a more stringent designation on their list. To put it lightly, this is a really terrible time to go outside. and,”offal “Wearing a mask is highly recommended,” says Lindsay Marr, an environmental engineer at Virginia Tech.
Advice on masking, of course, can lead to whiplash.Face coverings are still the most prominent thing for most Americans About the new coronavirus— protective cover intended to be worn when attending dangerous gatherings indoors. But here we need to invert the masking script. At this point, it’s outside air that we want to protect the airway the most. In many ways, the best masking practices we have right now require ignoring some of our most basic coronavirus-fighting instincts.
To be fair, the idea of masking COVID-19 still helps us avoid risk. Both virus outbreaks and wildfires introduce dangerous particles into the eyes and respiratory tract. Both can be blocked with a suitable barrier. The difference is the cause. Crowds and awkward indoor air currents pose the greatest risk, as pathogens primarily travel on people. Fires and their smokey ash byproducts, on the other hand, can be fanned and moved around by very outdoor winds, which are welcome during virus outbreaks. Fires clog the atmosphere with all kinds of pollutants. These include carbon monoxide, which causes oxygen starvation and poisoning, and a class of chemicals called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons that have been linked to an increased risk of cancer. But the main danger is Components of particulate matter Particles of soot, ash, and dust are fine and can be carried long distances before reaching an unsuspecting face.
Once inhaled, these particles, which the EPA tracks in an index known as PM2.5, are deposited deep in the airways and can even enter the blood.spots get annoyed A moist membrane that lines the nose, mouth, lungs, and eyes. They trigger bouts of inflammation, causing itching and irritation. Chronic exposure to them has been associated with heart and lung problems, the risks of which include: especially high It also covers people with chronic medical conditions (a burden concentrated on people of color and the poor), as well as the elderly and children.
But N95 and many other quality masks have their roots in environmental hygiene. They were specifically designed for: filter out Fine particulate matter that travels through the air. And they are amazing at their jobs. Aerosol scientist Jose Luis Jimenez of the University of Colorado Boulder recently tested the performance of an N95 strapped to his face. He used an industry-standard test to measure particulate matter on the outside of the mask to see how much it penetrated through the device and into the space around the nose and mouth. As for percentages, he told me: It worked very well. ” Protection calculations are also made on a broader scale. A well-fitting mask provides the following benefits: Reduce smoking-related hospitalizationsresearch supports their importance. mainstay of firefighting.
Jimenez said the key is to choose the right mask and fit it tightly to your face. Professionally fit tested by experts in the field to prevent contaminants from entering through crevices. However, surgical masks, cloth masks, or other loose fittings not specifically designed to filter out small particles are ineffective. it’s still better than not hiding it at all. (If this sounds familiar, it should. Whether it’s viral or smoky, “Masks don’t care what the particles are,” Ma told me. “Masks care about size.”)
N95 masks are not perfect protection either. They offer no eye protection, nor do they do a good job of keeping out the carbon monoxide and other gaseous pollutants emitted by wildfires. (There’s a reason for this: passing gas through the mask allows you to continue breathing while wearing it.) But the gas is volatile and dissipates quickly. For Americans hundreds or thousands of miles from the source of the smoke, “particulate matter is probably the biggest concern for us,” Maher told me.even in the part of new york and Pennsylvania Carbon monoxide statistics remain low even though PM2.5 has surged to dangerous levels.
Given how dangerous the debate around masking has become, not everyone will agree with the masking advice. Less than a month after the US coronavirus public health emergency officially ended, people are exhausted from face coverings and other mitigation measures. And we’re about to enter a time when a synthetic polymer fabric wrapped around your face can be downright miserable, especially in the humidity of the Northeast heat. But when it comes to avoiding wildfire smoke harm, experts generally consider masks to be a second line of defense. The first priority is to minimize any exposure. At this time, that means staying indoors with tightly closed doors and windows, especially for those most at risk. Paula Olshewski, an environmental health researcher at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health and Safety, also recommends running all available air filters. Air conditioners, portable air purifiers, and DIY air filters can all help.
It’s also a good time to be mindful of the difference between filtering and filtering, experts said. ventilation, or increase the flow to replace the stale air. Both are important and sustainable interventions against respiratory viruses. But in wildfire situations, good ventilation can actually happen. gain Jimenez told me that allowing too much smoke is harmful. For now, the quintessential enemy of COVID-19, stale indoor air, is your ally in avoiding smoking. Masks are useful for people who have to go outside in areas with poor air quality, such as those with an index of 150 or higher.
The move may feel particularly counterintuitive to those who have long stopped wearing masks to combat COVID-19, or who still wear them simply because the rules don’t fit them. . With the guidance of flip-flops, everywhere mask To Wear a mask until you get vaccinated To In fact, let’s wear a mask even after vaccination To Mask indoors only, Americans don’t often hit a steady rhythm even if they practice. This inertia may be particularly strong on the East Coast, which is largely immune to the wildfire scourge that has always plagued the West. (It sets the US back big) other countries, especially in East AsiaIn , it has long been common practice to wear masks to protect against viruses and pollutants indoors and outdoors. N95 and HEPA shortages are nothing new, even in California. )
That said, our coronavirus-centric take on masks will always sound alarm bells. Wildfires, and virus outbreaks for that matter, are expected to become more common in the future, even in areas that have never experienced them before. And despite the coronavirus sickness, Americans are far more conscious of, and often more readily available, masks today than they were just a few years ago.wildfires are not good It’s news, but maybe we can do something friendly to masks. From a public health standpoint, Olshevsky said there is one thing smoke does. That said, unlike microscopic viruses, smoke is visibly eerie. “People realize their air is not clean,” she told me. Ash and fog alone won’t be enough to break the discord over masks. But a threat this obvious could at least create a small rift.
This story is part of the Atlantic Planet series supported by the HHMI Department of Science and Education.