Let's talk MASKS Wearing masks may increase your risk of coronavirus infection, expert says For the public, they should not wear facemasks unless they are sick, and if a healthcare worker advised them. "For the average member of the public walking down a street, it is not a good idea," Dr. Harries said. "What tends to happen is people will have one mask. They won't wear it all the time, they will take it off when they get home, they will put it down on a surface they haven't cleaned," she added. Further, she added that behavioral issues could adversely put themselves at more risk of getting the infection. For instance, people go out and don't wash their hands, they touch parts of the mask or their face, and they get infected. Masks are recommended for those showing symptoms of a disease, if they are sick, or they have tested positive for COVID-19 since these are designed to prevent the virus from coming out. https://www.news-medical.net/news/20200315/Wearing-masks-may-increase-your-risk-of-coronavirus-infection-expert-says.aspx Harmful Effects of Rebreathing Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a gas the body naturally produces as waste. We breathe in oxygen (O2) to fuel organs and tissues and the end product is CO2. The balance between these two gases is required for a healthy body. However, when we rebreathe CO2 it can have harmful and sometimes dangerous effects on the body. When CO2 levels are elevated in the body it is known as hypercapnia. Hypercapnia can occur for a number of reasons, one of which is rebreathing our own exhaled CO2. Rebreathing CO2 can lead to increased blood pressure, headaches, muscle twitches, rapid heart rate, chest pain, confusion, and fatigue. In extreme cases, if left untreated, hypercapnia can lead to organ damage and even have long standing effects on the brain. http://thebetteroxygenmask.com/harmful-effects-of-rebreathing-carbon-dioxide-co2/ No good choices: A mask may block out some pollution but have other ill health effects A mask may also cause respiratory distress and become a hotbed for microbes to thrive. Moreover, carbon dioxide that is exhaled can get trapped in the chamber of the mask then re-enter the body each time the mask user inhales. This delivers less oxygen into the body than when the person is not wearing a mask. “It can lead to oxygen shortage, suffocation, respiration trouble, and heart attacks,” said Dr D Saha, scientist and additional director at the Central Pollution Control Board. https://scroll.in/pulse/860276/no-good-choices-a-mask-may-block-out-some-pollution-but-have-other-ill-health-effects