For more than a year now, it has become part of everyday life for many people to wear a mask as an infection control measure. Due to the appearance of the Sars-CoV2 virus mutations, the mask requirement was tightened again in January. Now it is also necessary to wear an FFP2 mask or medical mouth and nose protection on public transport and when shopping. This is intended to increase infection protection for the population.
This raises the question for many: Is it healthy at all? The mask smells of chemicals and should I hang it in front of my nose?
In fact, the production of occupational safety products in the field of masks is of course based on chemical-technical processes. This is the only way to ensure a protective effect. Actually, these occupational health and safety products are disposable items and are also declared as such.
The FFP2 masks appear to be made of paper, but are realistically made of thermoplastic: polypropylene. In addition, there are adhesives, binders, antioxidants, UV stabilizers and much more. Of course, the occupational safety products are all EU-certified and therefore also tested.
The question that arises for many average consumers is: Are all these chemicals healthy at all?
Our tip for using the masks: (Video on how to wear the masks from AAV)
Before using it for the first time, simply remove the mask from the packaging without touching the mask itself and hang it by the ear hangers in the fresh air. After evaporation (approx. 2 hours), the mask can be worn without any odor disturbance. Normally, the masks should be disposed of properly after use.
Due to the current availability of the masks, and also due to the cost intensity, it has already been advised in the media to use the masks several times. But what should you pay attention to? There are many possibilities, but also limits, of the self-responsible reuse of FFP2 masks for private use.
Scientific studies by Münster University of Applied Sciences have shown that the SARS-CoV-2 pathogen can be safely inactivated on and in the mask material at temperatures of 80 ° C and an exposure time of one hour. It is even recommended to heat the masks in the oven. However, this method is not feasible for many people, because maintaining a constant temperature of 80° is hardly achievable in normal ovens.