Does anyone think masks will become the new normal?

[Chaosreigns123]

Even after the virus is gone/there is a vaccine?

Once we go down this route of masks being widely used in public.

Already we're hearing more and more how if you don't wear a mask you're killing people, selfish, putting others at risk.

Ok right now I think most of us want to see the back of this virus, but I'm no longer sure where the government are going with this. Are we going for elimination in England? Even if we get a vaccine it's likely not everyone will be eligible, or it will be yearly and the virus will still be circulating.

Will people devise masks are a good idea to protect against other viruses?

And shouldn't be accepted*

My 4 year old point blank refuses to put a mask on, I have tried various forms of bribery! I'm hoping the mask wearing won't last long enough that he will have any memories of it as an adult.

As soon as this crisis is over, masks will go away. We are a free country and masks don't represent any form of freedom.

Why are you trying to put a mask on a 4 year old.

@Mrsjayy

The recorded data shows that this deadly and invisible but highly contagious disease only discriminate on those who have the highest risk appetite and don't take a combination of Covid safety mitigation measures.

New born babies to centenarians have all suffered and paid the ultimate cost. Sure the survivorship rates is health and age dependent but why would you potentially want to inadvertently not protect children as the long term organ damage impacts are as yet unknown?

Children overseas in Covid smarter nations wear some face protection be it a hat with face shield or just a basic surgical mask. They are just being proactive and possibly don't have "free" public tax payer funded healthcare by default to fall back on.

All mums should consider all parental health and safety in an ongoing medical emergency pandemic even more seriously. If people take more common common sense mitigation measures perhaps we will finally collectively defeat this common invisible enemy and will no longer need to take these necessary mitigation measures. No one likes wearing these things but no one prefers herd immunity either given unknown long term effects etc etc.

Stay safe and preferably like the world outside of England mostly do - step up your safety mindset!

Where I am underv5s are exempt I understand England under 11s I don't think a child so young should be forced to wear a face mask their lung function is different to a regular adult

New born babies to centenarians have all suffered and paid the ultimate cost. Sure the survivorship rates is health and age dependent but why would you potentially want to inadvertently not protect children as the long term organ damage impacts are as yet unknown?

Children overseas in Covid smarter nations wear some face protection be it a hat with face shield or just a basic surgical mask. They are just being proactive and possibly don't have "free" public tax payer funded healthcare by default to fall back on

All mums should consider all parental health and safety in an ongoing medical emergency pandemic even more seriously. If people take more common common sense mitigation measures perhaps we will finally collectively defeat this common invisible enemy and will no longer need to take these necessary mitigation measures. No one likes wearing these things but no one prefers herd immunity either given unknown long term effects etc etc

Stay safe and preferably like the world outside of England mostly do - step up your safety mindset

Oh FFS stop being so disingenuous - it is vanishingly unlikely that my two-year-old will die or suffer any lasting consequences from Covid. I hate all this ‘this virus doesn’t discriminate’ rubbish; it’s not fair but it very clearly does. It is, overwhelmingly, a disease of the old and the vulnerable - yes, we need to try to mitigate this where possible, but we also need to accept that this is the case. And there is no way I’m putting a toddler in a mask or normalising ridiculous compulsive hygiene measures (like hand washing after visiting a forest, as I read on a post earlier). Sensible basic hygiene, reasonable social distancing measures and that’s it.

Also, why is it mums having to worry about all this? Are men not responsible for protecting against Covid?

@Mrsjayy

Hairdresser required it, they made an exception.

Your hairdresser is a tool !

"normalising ridiculous compulsive hygiene measures (like hand washing after visiting a forest, as I read on a post earlier)"

What am I missing? What's ridiculous or compulsive about washing your hands after you've been out, let alone to a place where any child would be picking up all sorts and putting their hands everywhere?

Yes I do tbh. Forgetting covid, it's made me realise how disgusting people are.

My hairdresser wants my 8 year old to wear a mask. We are not going there! the hair can just get longer!!! No child should be wearing these things...

Goodness..all this hand washing and gel...our poor kids will have no immunity to anything!!!!!

No child should be wearing these things.

It's just a mask. It won't hurt them. If you look at kindergartens in almost any East Asian country right now, you'll see hundreds of little kids happily wearing masks.

But, I think most people will be happy to throw away their masks once this is over.

Did anyone else read that one third of children in Florida tested positive for coronavirus? It was pretty shocking and worrying news. We have no idea what the long term effects of this virus may be.

What am I missing? What's ridiculous or compulsive about washing your hands after you've been out, let alone to a place where any child would be picking up all sorts and putting their hands everywhere?

Because children need continual exposure to germs and bacteria for their immune systems to develop properly. ‘Picking up all sorts’ is exactly what they should be doing in the early years. There’s increasing evidence that allergies and asthma are caused in part by modern society’s hyper-cleanliness. And Covid is highly unlikely to be lurking on a tree trunk in the middle of a forest.

In an outdoor context we’d wash hands it there’s visible dirt/mud and before eating - that’s it.

I'm not making my 7 year old wear a mask if it's not required. Under 11s don't have to in shops and public transport.

"In an outdoor context we’d wash hands it there’s visible dirt/mud and before eating - that’s it."

I'd be asking to wash hands anyway, regardless of covid, before that same child covers everything in the house with whatever they were fiddling with.

Yes, you eat a bushel of dirt in your lifetime, but you're not supposed to do it all at once!

@DameFanny Then I think on that point we’ll just have to agree to differ. I take a fairly laid back approach to a bit of dirt!

I bloody hope not. I don’t disagree with them on principle at all, I can see the virtue of them for virus control... but wow they are impossible to live with if you rely on lip reading DH is profoundly deaf and the mask rule is already proving hard for him; he just cannot understand what anyone says to him in a mask and people get quite agitated and irritable (not that he can hear what they’re saying I guess!) when he just can’t understand them. It takes away his only means of being able to ‘hear’ someone.

Hope not !

I’m happy to wear one at the moment but as soon as we have the all clear I won’t be, mild colds and bugs don’t require mask wearing.

I have a feeling that Covid will burn itself out at some point, I don’t think we will have to live with it forever.

@3cats

Did anyone else read that one third of children in Florida tested positive for coronavirus? It was pretty shocking and worrying news. We have no idea what the long term effects of this virus may be.

A third of children tested have been positive. Not a third of all children. There are over 4 million under 18s in florida.

"A report detailing pediatric cases of coronavirus in Florida shows more than 17,000 people under the age of 18 have been diagnosed with COVID-19. That includes 213 pediatric hospitalizations"

1% hospitalisation rate

@ZaZathecat

I expect we will become more aware of how viruses are transmitted and wear masks in public when we have a cold in order to not give it to others, like happens in China.

It might become more socially necessarily - it depends on what face-coverings do for transmission rates for normal viruses and such in the UK. There was a reported drop in 'normal' mortality in Norway over the last few months as older/vulnerable people weren't contracting everyday viruses etc.

It might be fascinating to see if people with asthma, COPD and other comparable illnesses experience an overall improvement in their health with less exposure to triggers.

A lot will depend on the uptake.

mild colds and bugs don’t require mask wearing

No but what about flu? 28000 deaths in the winter of 2015, 27000 deaths in the winter of 2017/2018. Those are not insignificant numbers, I've no idea why we don't routinely wear masks in winter to protect others, at least on public transport.
I almost died after contracting flu and pneumonia and I was perfectly healthy. I hope at the very least the days of dragging yourself into work whilst clearly ill become a thing of the past.