If you have beards then you may want to consider shaving them off, especially if you want to protect yourselves from the coronavirus. The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the US has just released new information advising anyone with facial hair to shave them off as it can interfere with protective respiratory devices such as face masks.
Apparently, some styles of facial hair are safe but some of them are not, especially those that will come into contact with the mask around the chin area. This prevents the mask from creating an effective seal around the wearers’ faces which can be dangerous.Ā
This makes the mask useless as polluted particles can enter these gaps and infect you with the virus. The CDC also said, “If your respirator has an exhalation valve, some of these styles may interfere with the valve working properly if the facial hair comes in contact with it.”
Some popular facial hair styles that will interfere with the face mask include ducktail, full beard, Van Dyke and chin curtain. The safe options are some moustaches that do not cross the mask’s seal, such as soul patch, pencil, walrus, handlebar and lampshade. You can refer to the graphic for more information.
Take note though that stubble and long stubble will affect the efficiency of the mask as well, as the hair crosses under the respirator sealing surface. Basically, you just have to make sure that your facial hair does not come into contact with the seal the mask has made around your face and you’re good. The best thing to do now might be going clean-shaven, as this will ensure the mask provides an effective seal around your face and keeps contaminated droplets away from you.
While it may hurt your vanity shave off all your facial hair, it can grow back in time but the coronavirus is seriously dangerous and can be fatal.Ā
Also read: Unethical Company Caught Making Fake Masks From Toilet Paper & Selling Them to The Public
