Thus far I have adhered to the mantra that has generally come to be associated with Brits in particular ‘KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON’, whilst the world has been swept by an invisible, treacherous common enemy labelled COVID-19 and governments have put various measures in place to manage the spread.
All the while, I have listened to different perspectives on the necessity for the various interventions versus the possible de-humanising effects, followed the research, observed, thought things through the best I can and tried to figure out options to navigate this rapidly changing world.
That was until Tuesday this week, when Singapore mandated the wearing of face masks upon leaving one’s home (except when engaging in solo strenuous exercise). Whilst this is not really a surprise since the recent 180 on the matter by the WHO and we have been discussing the pros and cons for a few weeks already in anticipation of such an announcement, it still sent shudders down my spine.
We do understand the intention behind the mandate to separate people via ‘social distancing’ and ask them to cover their mouths lest seemingly perfectly healthy individuals, unknowingly infect the immune-compromised and others at risk who need to be protected.
Nevertheless, I am a bit confused about this reversal of direction and concerned about some aspects of wearing a mask when venturing outside into the now ‘fresher’ air:
- As I understand it, some countries in the world still do not have sufficient PPE for front-line staff and governments are partially engaging in bidding wars to secure the supplies needed – so shouldn’t we continue to free up capacity in the production to supply those needs first. Granted medical staff ideally need N95 masks for adequate protection, but I would think that mask producers can retool their production.
- The ‘surgical’ masks such as the one depicted are known to be so saturated after just 7 minutes meaning that droplets can penetrate, so they are likely minimally effective and the research that wearing them will indeed help to curb the spread is not robust. Equally, the suggestion of an expert from China that the reason European countries have been so hard hit is in part due to the hesitancy to mandate the wearing of masks remains unproven.
- We have tried wearing various brands of ‘surgical’ masks and whilst I get breakouts and boils, suggesting exposure to toxins, my partner’s face itches like crazy. As he is the equivalent of the canary in the coal mine when it comes to toxins in fabrics, this also indicates that the materials used are NOT FREE of toxins and irritants.
- Even as more pressing problems obviously take priority, I do not believe that we should necessarily forget about the environment and initiatives to reduce waste, such as the UK’s proposal to introduce a ‘clothes’ tax to encourage people to recycle more and to penalize the us of single-use/throw-away items of clothing. I am pretty certain that most ‘surgical’ masks are not fully biodegradable and so may well end up in a landfill or eventually the ocean (despite the fact that the one depicted below has a dolphin emblem).
- Not to mention the fact that encountering others behind a mask is likely to have a de-humanising impact as you cannot even SMILE at others in solidarity during these challenging times.
- I am confused about the sense of wearing a mask and REBREATHING one’s CARBONDIOXIDE (this is presumably the reason that wearing one during strenuous exercise is not required) BACK INTO THE LUNGS every time one tries to get some fresh air into them. Particularly when the VIRUS we are all being protected from is known to AFFECT THE LUNGS. Wouldn’t fresh air be beneficial in such a situation, particularly for those whose air quality within their homes is not the best or where the air-conditioning is releasing coolants in order to maintain a livable temperature!
Considering all of my concerns, I had initially resolved not to leave my home (except for going running, as this does not require me to wear a mask at present) for the next couple of weeks and instead take the opportunity to go on a water fast to avoid the need for food shopping.
None-the-less, I woke up full of enthusiasm the following morning, confident that I had found a solution that I can live with in the short-term and I got straight to work on making my own face-mask, which is reuseable (therefore environmentally friendly), less toxic, cheap and easy to make by recycling something most ladies will have at home.
As coincidence would have it, mine also has a pink bow, the global symbol for breast cancer awareness, which seems particularly apt considering I received an alert for breast cancer prevention campaign earlier this week. This also served to remind me that whilst Covid-19 is currently dominating the headlines, there are other conditions causing suffering to countless people out there who may also be in need of a little TLC, support and attention.
I encourage you to watch my ‘how-to’ video by clicking on the below.