LONDON: A new study has suggested that wearing face masks by the entire population could lead to controllable levels of COVID-19 and prevent further spread of the pandemic.
The research, led by scientists at Britain’s Cambridge suggested that the COVID-19 lockdowns alone will not curb the spread of the deadly coronavirus. According to the research, even homemade masks can drastically reduce transmission rates if enough people wear them in public.
Richard Stutt, who co-led the study at Cambridge said, “The findings showed that if widespread mask use were combined with social distancing and some lockdown measures, this could be an acceptable way of managing the pandemic and re-opening economic activity.”
Moreover, the World Health Organisation updated its guidance on Friday to recommend that governments ask everyone to wear fabric face masks in public areas where there is a risk to reduce the spread of the disease.
In this study, researchers said that if people wear masks whenever they are in public it is twice as effective at reducing the transmission than if masks are only worn after symptoms appear.
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