![\"Masks](\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/9f8cbc117aae39c85f94d1d256a00d848f5058e3\/0_165_6511_3907\/master\/6511.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=864fc32fb8da71883d9d7915456ad1ad\")
<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/a> Frequent washing is particularly important if coming into contact with vulnerable individuals, say experts. Composite: Rike\/Getty\/iStockPhoto \/ Guardian Design Team<\/p>\n\n\n\n We hook them on to our faces, laugh, sneeze and sputter into them, then crumple them into our bags or pockets only to retrieve them and do it all again. Yet despite official advice that we should be wearing a fresh face covering each time we enter an enclosed public space, a YouGov poll<\/a> revealed many people are going several wears between washes \u2013 and 15% of Brits don\u2019t wash their reusable masks at all. Similarly, more than half of those opting for disposable masks are rewearing them \u2013 7% of them indefinitely so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Face coverings are designed to catch the respiratory droplets we emit from our mouths and noses, but given that they\u2019re our own respiratory droplets, is this really so bad? We examine the evidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you were to swab your used face covering and grow the microorganisms in a petri dish, you would find a variety of bacteria, viruses and fungi. \u201cMost are likely to be harmless \u2013 you would get something similar if you sampled your hands, nose, mouth or many other parts of your body,\u201d says Prof Cath Noakes, an expert in airborne disease transmission at the University of Leeds. However, combined with the friction and humidity associated with prolonged mask-wearing, this microbial menagerie could trigger outbreaks of \u201cmaskne\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is an umbrella term coined to cover all manner of facial rashes associated with mask-wearing<\/a>, including acne, says Dr Thivi Maruthappu, a consultant dermatologist at Highgate hospital and spokesperson for the British Skin Foundation. \u201cAs masks can be a vector for bacteria, fungi and viruses, I would recommend washing your mask on a daily basis if you\u2019re wearing it every day.\u201d Soft fabrics such as cotton are less likely to cause friction than synthetic fibres like polyester, she adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you had Covid-19, then your face covering would be heavily contaminated with coronavirus, as well as other bugs. Your mask would pose a risk to others if they handled it, so you should never share masks or touch someone else\u2019s without thoroughly washing your hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Other people\u2019s exhalations are a different matter. A 2019 study of healthcare workers<\/a> identified various respiratory viruses on the outside of their masks, including influenza and adenovirus, a cause of the common cold. Although there is currently no data proving that such external contamination increases Covid-19 risk, \u201cit theoretically could if you touched the mask and then touched your nose or eyes\u201d, says Noakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ideally, after each time you wear it. \u201cIt is possible to get a mask contaminated after daily wear,\u201d says Prof Raina MacIntyre, an infectious disease researcher at the University of New South Wales in Sydney. \u201cWe tested this<\/a> and found virus on the inside and outside of masks, both surgical and cloth.\u201d Advertisementhttps:\/\/cb4596b0668e93eba46386426e0e88ec.safeframe.googlesyndication.com\/safeframe\/1-0-37\/html\/container.html<\/p>\n\n\n\n Frequent washing is particularly important if you\u2019re coming into contact with vulnerable individuals, says Prof William Ristenpart, a chemical engineer at the University of California, Davis. He recently discovered that the influenza virus<\/a> could travel on contaminated dust particles, released by rubbing a contaminated tissue, say. In a separate study<\/a>, he showed that dust was ejected from fabric masks during normal wear: \u201cYou can imagine if someone is infected and they are wearing a cotton fabric mask that is heavily contaminated, it\u2019s possible that those particles could carry the virus,\u201d he says. \u201cOf course, you can\u2019t wash it every 20 minutes, but every five or six days is way too long.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n A hot wash is best, although masks can go in with your normal laundry. \u201cWashing must be done in water that is at least 60C, with soap,\u201d says MacIntyre. She previously conducted a trial of cloth masks among Vietnamese healthcare workers and found that, compared with surgical masks, not only did they not protect the staff, they may have increased their risk of illness. Further analysis<\/a> revealed it was not the masks, per se, that were the problem, but the fact they were often washed by hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you have been affected or have any information, we’d like to hear from you. You can get in touch by filling in the form below, anonymously if you wish or contact us via WhatsApp<\/a> by clicking here <\/a>or adding the contact +44(0)7867825056. Only the Guardian can see your contributions and one of our journalists may contact you to discuss further. \u201cThe healthcare workers whose cloth masks were washed in the hospital laundry were as well protected as surgical mask users,\u201d says MacIntyre. \u201cHand-washing in cold or lukewarm water is inadequate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Masks should also be fully dry before being worn. \u201cDamp or moist fabric masks can be more porous and therefore less efficacious,\u201d says Maruthappu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf done carefully and safely it should be OK,\u201d says MacIntyre. \u201cYou must sanitise your hands first, remove the face piece [by] touching only the straps or ear loops, and put it in a ziplock bag. It can be put on again after sanitising the hands and again, not touching the face piece.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The more times you handle your face covering without washing it or replacing it, the greater the risk will be.<\/p>\n\n\n\nHow contaminated do face masks get, and with what sorts of microbes?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nWhat is maskne?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What<\/strong>\u2019s the risk of catching Covid-19 from a dirty mask?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
So<\/strong> how often should I wash my reusable fabric mask?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
How should I be washing it?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Share your story<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Share your stories<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Tell us<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat if I<\/strong> only wear<\/strong> my mask for <\/strong>10 minutes, <\/strong>put<\/strong> it in my bag, <\/strong>then pull it out again later, or the next day?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Why do I need a separate container for my mask?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n