The Evidence Is Clear: Masks Don’t Do Anything…
We’re being hit with the “Super Flu” (allegedly), and that means everyone wants us to wear masks again.
We went over this (a lot) in 2020.
Then we went over it again in 2023.
Masks don’t work, they never worked, and – prior to 2020 – the academic literature was very clear on this.
In a 2016 literature review, infection control expert Dr John Hardie found [emphasis added]:
Between 2004 and 2016 at least a dozen research or review articles have been published on the inadequacies of face masks. All agree that the poor facial fit and limited filtration characteristics of face masks make them unable to prevent the wearer inhaling airborne particles. In their well-referenced 2011 article on respiratory protection for healthcare workers, Drs. Harriman and Brosseau conclude that, “facemasks will not protect against the inhalation of aerosols.”
[…]
Health care workers have long relied heavily on surgical masks to provide protection against influenza and other infections. Yet there are no convincing scientific data that support the effectiveness of masks for respiratory protection.
[…]
It should be concluded from these and similar studies that the filter material of face masks does not retain or filter out viruses
That study was removed from the website of the Journal of Oral Health in July 2020, because it was “no longer relevant in our current climate”. Which is perfectly normal, I’m sure.
Another study, conducted in 2019 and published in May 2020, concluded:
Disposable medical masks are loose-fitting devices that were designed to be worn by medical personnel to protect accidental contamination of patient wounds, and to protect the wearer against splashes or sprays of bodily fluids. There is limited evidence for their effectiveness in preventing influenza virus transmission either when worn by the infected person for source control or when worn by uninfected persons to reduce exposure. Our systematic review found no significant effect of face masks on transmission of laboratory-confirmed influenza.
In 2023, the Cochrane Report by Jefferson et al. found:
Wearing masks in the community probably makes little or no difference to the outcome of influenza‐like illness (ILI)/COVID‐19 like illness compared to not wearing masks […] Wearing masks in the community probably makes little or no difference to the outcome of laboratory‐confirmed influenza/SARS‐CoV‐2 compared to not wearing masks…
Physical interventions to interrupt or reduce the spread of respiratory viruses
None of this is new information; we’ve published it all before, but if they keep pitching the same lies, we’ll just have to keep batting with the same facts.
When it comes to preventing disease, masks are not effective. They never worked. The science backs this up.
This is neither an ideological position nor a moral position. It is simply a rational, fact-based position.
Anyone saying otherwise is misinformed, ideologically captured, willfully dishonest or some combination of all three. – Kit Knightly, Off-Guardian,org
article website here
I have posted about this before. There is no study anywhere that shows wearing a mask does anything to protect anyone from viruses.
Medical masks do not protect anyone from viruses. Their job in hospitals is all about reducing bacterial exposure. Not viral exposure.
In order to protect people from viral infection, we are talking about respirators. N95 masks. They must form a tight seal when worn. That means no facial hair. No beards. No mustaches.
During the so-called pandemic, I believe the most effective protocol people followed to reduce the spread was using hand sanitizer. Washing your hands often. THAT was effective. Covering your mouth while coughing. Using a handkerchief while sneezing. Staying home when you are sick. THOSE are effective against the spread.
Locking down the population, shutting stores, gyms and restaurants, 2 metre spacing between people, not allowing people to visit each other, masking children and requiring getting the jab to have a job or travel are all things that were not effective.
In fact, almost everything we were forced to do was ineffective.
Now with flu season upon us and a flu vaccine that appears to have nothing to do with the strain of flu that we are encountering, we once again will be subjected to an on slot of recommendations to help ‘flatten the curve’. This time its the flu.
Previous related posts here