Govt says it's time to wear a mask even at home

Doctors say this can prevent infection from asymptomatic people. Bengaluru doctors weigh in on the recommendation

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Dr Sumana Y

The central government has asked people to wear masks inside their homes as India battles the second wave of coronavirus that has a lethal and virulent strain sweeping across the country.

For the sake of one’s safety and that of their loved ones, it is now necessary to wear masks at home and refrain from inviting guests in order to break the chain of transmission.

Metrolife spoke to a few health experts to understand their take on the same.

Dr K S Satish, pulmonologist and a senior consultant, says that people with no Covid patients at home should also wear masks inside as some might be asymptomatic carriers.

“People who might be infected with the virus tend to show symptoms only after two to three days. During this period, the virus load is high and they could be spreading the infection to their family members and people they come in contact with,” he says.

“At a time where most people don’t wear masks when they are outside, it will be hard to make them wear it inside their homes. Nonetheless, if a family member is tested Covid positive, others must definitely wear masks and isolate the infected person,” he adds.

One simple action like this can keep the whole family safe. “When you are living in a small house, maintaining social distancing can be hard. But if one wants to decrease the level of spread to some extent, then every family member should wear a mask, including children,” says Dr Chetan Kumar N G, allergy and chest specialist.

“There is a potential risk for those with less immunity since majority of people are asymptomatic in the second wave and are spreading the virus to those who are in higher level of danger like people with comorbid conditions,” he adds.

“We have been seeing entire families, in this wave, turning positive, even when most of them have stayed indoors,” he adds.

Dr Sumana Y, consultant and department of wellness, says that we are in the third stage of a pandemic, where the spread is stronger and faster due to community transmission.

“Even today, we see crowding in many places and most people do not wear their masks properly. Before, BBMP used to either mark infected homes or seal them down. Since that is not possible now, a lot of infected people are roaming in public, making it easier for the virus to spread in large numbers,” she says.

“So even when a person steps out of the house for a brief moment, just to buy groceries or other essentials, they might carry the virus back home and spread it to the family members who are staying inside. And that is why, use of masks at home is a good measure to contain the virus,” she explains.

People should try not to step out of their homes unless it’s an emergency, says Dr Subrata Das, diabetologist. “Expecting non-affected families to wear masks at home is unrealistic because people are not following rules when they are out in public. Instead, they should just try staying indoors,” he says. “We used to talk about wearing masks outside homes, but the way the infection has spread, it will be better if we wear masks inside as well, at least when we are closely interacting with someone,” he adds.

The practice of wearing masks at home was 79 percent effective at curbing transmission before symptoms emerged in the first person infected, but it wasn’t protective once symptoms had developed, a study shows.