Coronavirus Tips: Why Wearing Face Masks Is Important- Know How To Make A Mask At Home

Coronavirus tips: Face masks have been found to be effective in prevention of coronavirus infection. You need to wear a mask when coughing or sneezing. Before putting on a mask, make sure you that you clean your hands with soap and water or alcohol-based hand rub. The mask should cover your nose and mouth and there should be no gap between your face and mask. Surgical and N-95 anti-pollution masks are most required by health care workers. This is the reason why its important to make masks at home.

This is important for not just your own protection, but also for ensuring availability of surgical masks for healthcare workers. According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, homemade face cover or face masks are good for maintaining personal hygiene. If you are not suffering from any medical conditions or do not have breathing difficulties, you should use homemade reusable face cover, particularly when you step out of your house to help protect the community at large.

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Importance face masks for coronavirus prevention

1. "People must be aware of the fact that there is acute shortage of surgical and N-95 face masks. They must not be misused," says Dr P Raghu Ram, President of The Association of Surgeons of India.
2. Dr Ram also suggests using homemade masks rather than using surgical masks or N-95 masks. "They need to be reserved for healthcare workers. N-95 masks are most needed by those who are dealing with patients in ICU," he informs.
3. "You can make a mask with a cotton cloth," he suggests.
4. Wearing masks serves the following two purposes. If you have cough, cold or are carrying any infection, then wearing a mask minimises the chances of transmitting it to others. When you are wearing a mask and someone inadvertently coughs, it reduces the larger viral droplets from entering air.
5. Do not forget to practice frequent washing of hands before wearing masks and after you take off the mask. You need to wash hands with soap and water for 20 seconds. "Wearing a face mask with frequent hand washing significantly reduces chances of catching an infection," Dr Ram explains.

Coronavirus prevention: Frequent washing of hands is equally important
Photo Credit: iStock

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Other tips to follow when wearing a mask:

• The mask should properly fit your face. It should neither be too loose nor too tight.
• "You need to avoid touching your face. When wearing a mask it is a common tendency to check if its placed properly or not. This should be avoided," Dr Ram tells DoctorNDTV.
• Avoid touching the front of masks.
• Make masks with a cotton cloth. It should have at least two layers. Dr Ram suggests doing a light test once you have made the mask. "After making the masks, you can put a light on it. If the light is minimised on being passed through the mask, then you can ensure that it is protective."
• The mask should not be wet. It should be dry and clean.
• Wear the mask every time you step out of the house. When you come back, wash them meticulously. Also wash your hands after washing the mask.
• Surgical masks or single-use mask need to be discarded after being used once. Do not reuse them. Wash your hands after discarding them.

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Dr Ram reasserts use of homemade masks. According to Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, homemade face cover is good for maintaining personal hygiene. "If you are not suffering from medical conditions or do not have breathing difficulties, you may use homemade reusable face cover, particularly when you step out of your house to help protect the community at large," it says in the video on how to make face masks at home. 

To make the face masks, you can use any clean cloth available at home. Do not forget to thoroughly clean and wash the cloth before stitching/making a face cover. 

Watch the video below to see how you can make masks at home.

(Dr P. Raghu Ram is President of The Association of Surgeons of India)

Disclaimer: This content including advice provides generic information only. It is in no way a substitute for qualified medical opinion. Always consult a specialist or your own doctor for more information. NDTV does not claim responsibility for this information.