From January 18, an FFP2 mask is mandatory in public transport in Bavaria to protect against corona infections.
A doctor, however, warns of the pitfalls that lurk when using face masks.
Coronavirus pandemic in Germany
: The number of
Covid-19 cases
is
high
in
January 2021
and
strict corona rules
apply nationwide
*
.
In
Bavaria
, an
FFP2 mask is mandatory
in
public transport
(buses, suburban trains, underground trains, trams) and in retail
from January 18
.
A doctor is now warning of pitfalls when using the
FFP2 masks
.
Munich / Vienna - The
FFP2 mask
is an effective means of protecting against infection with the
insidious coronavirus *
.
Many experts, scientists and medical professionals agree on this.
In
Bavaria
, this special
face mask has
to be
worn
in
local public transport (ÖPNV)
from January 18,
according to the will of
Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU)
*
and his government
- for example in the subways of the metropolis of
Munich
*
with its around 1, 56 million inhabitants.
Coronavirus pandemic in Germany: In Bavaria, an FFP2 mask is mandatory in public transport from January 18
The Bavarian state government reaffirmed this rule before news of a possibly
radical corona lockdown in Germany
leaked.
That the
FFP2 masks
protect against the transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 pathogen is also of the opinion of Miranda Suchomel, assistant professor at the Institute for Hygiene and Applied Immunology at the
Med-Uni Vienna
.
And yet the doctor from
Austria has
objections.
Coronavirus in Bavaria: An FFP2 mask must be worn in public transport
She assumes "that super-spreader events in the course of which a corona infected person infects many others are mostly related to loud talking or singing," she recently told the Austrian
standard
.
And: People who wear FFP2 masks have to talk louder to each other, she explained: "That increases the risk of infection even more."
With a view to the
subways
in her place of residence Vienna (around 1.9 million inhabitants), she recommended keeping silent on public transport or at least talking quietly to one another in order to reduce the risk of infection.
And Suchomel is apparently critical of one more point.
Medical doctor from Austria: do wet FFP2 masks no longer ask for protection against corona?
When exercising, especially in connection with snow, the
FFP2 masks would
quickly become soaked and then no longer protect at all.
Now it is snowing
heavily
in the south of the Federal Republic and especially in
Bavaria
these days.
Many
S-Bahn stations
in and around
Munich
, for example, are quite unprotected in the open air, and this also applies to individual U-Bahn stations (Neuperlach, Studentenstadt) or at least their entrances.
If you get flakes on the mask, this could possibly worsen its effectiveness.
Whether in
Munich, Nuremberg, Augsburg or Ingolstadt
- public transport commuters have to be
careful
in
winter
, according to Suchomel, that they avoid snowfall on the way there or back from public transport.
(pm) * tz.de and Merkur.de are part of the Germany-wide Ippen-Digital editorial network
