Wearing a mask did nothing to reduce the spread of the Omicron variant, according to new research out of the UK
Wearing face coverings did nothing to reduce the risk of infection by the Omicron variant of COVID, according to a new study from the University of East Anglia.
The researchers used data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) COVID survey in England which estimated how many people had infections.
From November 2021 to May 2022, the ONS also asked individuals about their circumstances and habits—including mask-wearing, work habits and travel—to see if those factors could be linked to risk of positivity.
By analysing this data, the researchers found that wearing face coverings did not reduce the risk of infection by the Omicron variant at all.
The researchers claim, however, that during the first wave of COVID-19, before the emergence of the Omicron variant, wearing a mask was associated with a decreased risk of infection.
Co-author Dr. Julii Brainard said, “This isn’t totally surprising because laboratory evidence suggests that the omicron variant was better able to infect the cells lining the upper respiratory tract than previous variants and so be more transmissible.”
The value of wearing masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19 has been a source of some controversy, not least of all because of initial warnings during the pandemic from experts and government officials not to wear them.
A number of scientific studies have claimed masking reduced transmission and infection during the pandemic, but others have claimed it did not. Experts and the mainstream media have been quick to dismiss negative studies as being wrong or subject to “misinterpretation.”
It’s worth noting that the data used for the new study were survey data which assume the truthfulness and accuracy of the participants’ own recollections. There is no way to verify whether the survey respondents did wear masks in exactly the manner they reported.
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