Search Results for "face masks"

Marty Makary relies on misleading and unsubstantiated claims to accuse U.S. government of spreading misinformation

Public health measures such as vaccination and mask-wearing are safe and effective strategies that help reduce the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in the community. Because public health policies are evidence-based, they rely on the scientific evidence accumulated at a particular time. In the case of a novel pathogen about which little was known, this evidence was extremely scarce in the early stages. For this reason, public policies have evolved with time to align with new evidence that emerged later on.

Daily Mail article provides misleading interpretation on South Korean mask study to imply mask-wearing is dangerous

Scientific evidence shows wearing a face mask reduces the spread of COVID-19. Wearing a face mask also doesn’t significantly impede the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide, as gas molecules are many times smaller than the pores of even an N95 mask. COVID-19 is mainly transmitted through infectious liquid particles spread from infected to uninfected individuals. Masks act as simple physical barriers that reduce the dissemination of these liquid particles, which are generated by people when they cough, sneeze, or speak.

No evidence that the COVID-19 vaccines cause “shedding”; Pfizer trial protocol doesn’t admit that vaccine shedding occurs

Viral shedding is associated with live attenuated vaccines, such as the MMR vaccine and chickenpox vaccine. This occurs because the weakened viruses used in live vaccines still retain the ability to reproduce themselves using our cells’ protein-making machinery. However, none of the COVID-19 vaccines available to date use live viruses. In addition, COVID-19 mRNA vaccines don’t induce high-enough levels of spike protein production that would lead the protein to be excreted. Scientific studies showed that SARS-CoV-2 infection causes shedding, but not vaccination.

Viral memes listing COVID-19 topics about which authorities were allegedly “wrong” rehash debunked misinformation

The spread of the COVID-19 pandemic was accompanied by an unprecedented spread of misinformation, occasionally exacerbated by mixed messages from public health authorities. However, changing recommendations reflect the fact that it takes time to conduct research, particularly amid a global health crisis with a novel pathogen, and authorities changed course as our scientific understanding of COVID-19 evolved over time.

Misinformation superspreaders are thriving on Musk-owned Twitter

Key results 1. A study of 490 “misinformation superspreaders” (here defined as accounts that have repeatedly published popular tweets linking to known misinformation) shows that their collective popularity has significantly grown (on average, +42% interactions per tweet) since Elon Musk took effective control of the platform on 27 October 2022. Accounts from established and credible … Continued

Medical exemptions to COVID-19 vaccines are granted for contraindications, not including history of blood clots or adverse reaction to prior vaccine

COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective against severe illness and death. People who have contraindications to COVID-19 vaccines can get a medical exemption. However, an adverse reaction to a previous vaccine and a history of blood clots aren’t, on their own, reasons not to vaccinate. On the contrary, COVID-19 vaccines are recommended for people with a history of blood clots, as they are at a higher risk of severe COVID-19 and related complications, including blood clotting.

Mask-wearing helps to reduce the spread of COVID-19; social media posts misinterpreted Annals of Internal Medicine study on N95 respirators

Although mask-wearing doesn’t prevent people from catching COVID-19 with 100% effectiveness, multiple peer-reviewed studies have shown that mask-wearing can and does meaningfully reduce the risk of transmitting the virus. Furthermore, mask-wearing isn’t associated with serious long-term health problems, whereas COVID-19 is. Consequently, mask-wearing is a low-risk intervention that offers important public health benefits, particularly during a pandemic caused by a respiratory virus.

Fox News article listing alleged mistakes in COVID-19 public health response mixes accurate information with unsubstantiated claims

The evolving nature of the COVID-19 pandemic and the lack of knowledge about SARS-CoV-2 made policymaking extremely challenging at the early stages of the pandemic. As scientists made discoveries and acquired new knowledge, public health policies changed accordingly. Contrary to the article’s claim that public health officials followed “medical dogma”, they adapted policies, and even reversed them when needed, based on our evolving knowledge about the virus. This is precisely how the scientific method is applied and is in fact the opposite of dogma. When scientists realize that the evidence doesn’t support their initial hypothesis, they acknowledge this and incorporate that new evidence into our understanding of the world. Gathering evidence, however, takes time, which is why policies also take time to catch up.

CDC’s updated developmental milestone checklists don’t mean that standards for children’s development are lowered; they signal a change in the surveillance strategy

In February 2022, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its developmental milestone checklists. The new checklists aim to improve the early detection of autism and developmental delays. This strategy would allow families and physicians to better identify those children who can benefit from early intervention programs, which in many cases, can help them to catch up to their peers.

No evidence that the low COVID-19 case rate in Sweden is due to herd immunity; vaccines don’t lead to new variants of SARS-CoV-2

Although Sweden started its COVID-19 vaccination campaign later than other countries, as of November 2021, its vaccine coverage is similar to that of the U.S. and the U.K. There is no evidence that the low number of COVID-19 cases in Sweden is due to herd immunity rather than vaccination, which scientific evidence has shown to reduce COVID-19 transmission. There is no evidence supporting the claim that COVID-19 vaccines lead to more dangerous variants. The evidence from clinical trials and the monitoring of vaccination campaigns show that COVID-19 vaccines are effective at reducing COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths.