If Facemasks work why is the infection rate rising so rapidly?

[Bbq1]

Just that really. Facemasks have been mandatory for a couple of months now and the majority of us are wearing them. However, if they are so effective why haven't they cut the infection rate massively? Instead, we're now expericing a second wave. Even if the amount of people currently wearing Facemasks was halved, you would still expect some reduction in infection, not an increase. Surely then, this all points to the fact that Facemasks just don't work?

It would be interesting to compare areas/ countries with high compliance to areas/ countries with mask rules but 50% of people deciding they are exempt (for genuine reasons in anout 5% of those cases and spurious reasons or no reason at all for the rest)

The culture of disobedience and obstinacy inherent to the UK doesn't help matters, but the enforcement is an issue? How many countries who've had bad Covid rates are the measures as softly enforced as they are in the UK?

I'm in Liverpool too. Just got back from the shops and everyone i saw was wearing a mask

I'm not in Liverpool but I've just got back from the shops too and everyone I saw was wearing a mask too with one exception.

I don't know where you all live where "nobody" is wearing a mask. I think they fit badly though, I was in the hairdresser the other day and lost count of the number of times I had to pull mine back over my nose, which rather defeats the purpose.

Because the virus doesn’t miraculously stop moving at 1 or 2 meters and it’s also airborne, therefore all those people sat inside restaurants and pubs will be infecting each other, not to mention there are still a tonne of people that don’t wear masks,
period.

Also I still don’t see people following social distancing and the rule of 6 is ridiculous because thats still 6 people hanging out in close proximity to one another where once again infection can spread. Social distancing should be followed even within groups of 6.

Families and friends are visiting each other’s households, multiple households daily, going on trips, living life normally and wearing a mask in shops because “they’ve been told to” - I’ve seen several people pull their masks down in shops when filming themselves on Instagram or taking photos. People are clueless and the government haven’t explained it properly.

I caught the bus for the first time since the lockdown. I wasn't 2 metres away from the nearest people and the woman in front of me who kept standing up and turning around, had her mask under her chin.
I also don't believe people are cleaning thoroughly and washing their hands properly. Lots of people are visiting other homes and going inside which is very dangerous.

" I think they fit badly though, I was in the hairdresser the other day and lost count of the number of times I had to pull mine back over my nose, which rather defeats the purpose."

then you get another one. I have ones that don't fit well. I either fix them, swap the strings around or use a different one.

Public Health England data shows people in the 20-39 age bracket are testing positive at higher rates than any other age group (fact despite what the it's the schools spreading it brigade think).

A lot of people in the low end of the 20-39 age bracket will be university and college students and a high percentage of school aged children will be in that demographic as well tbf.

Cases were going up before schools and universities went back, but that's when it's really ripped through cities.

"I also don't believe people are cleaning thoroughly and washing their hands properly. "

I agree with the hand washing. Some people are rejecting hand sanitiser in favour of soap and water, but are then touching quite a few doors on their way back from the sink.
Having said that, a poster said above said that touching surfaces is a minimal risk so if that's true, I suppose it's OK.
Cleaning thoroughly is not something I've been advised by the govt to do. You should have seen the extremely complicated cleaning instructions (what proportion of bleach to mix with water, etc.) I was given for the eventuality that I had Covid and lived with someone else, which luckily I didn't have to follow.

I don't think most people are wearing them.

Some people are wearing them, and of the ones who are wearing them, most of them are wearing them on their chins for some reason that I really don't understand.

Mask, or no mask... I get it. Chin masks? I don't understand this option! Not for a second!

and a high percentage of school aged children will be in that demographic as well tbf.

High percentage of parents of school aged children.

Mask, or no mask... I get it. Chin masks? I don't understand this option! Not for a second!

It's just paying lip service in case they get challenged.

Yep, when it's the law, people have to have a mask on them in case a police officer comes around so they sometimes have it around their chin or somewhere else totally inappropriate but handy.

@Gwenhwyfar

"I don't go anywhere apart from work where we are all quite a long way apart and there are no customers coming in and out. "

Is there air conditioning at your work? Could you be touching surfaces touched by others and then your face? Do you wear a mask when not at your personal work area at work? (The mask does at least stop you touching a door handle and then immediately your mouth or nose).

There are 5 of us - 4 separate offices and a bloke in the warehouse. Hand sanitisers everywhere, and all the surfaces and door handles get deep cleaned daily. None of my colleagues have had a cold to pass on to me.

I trained myself not to touch my face years ago anyway, as I have a tendency to break out in allergic skin reactions.

I went out to a large shopping centre yesterday. First time I had been out anywhere like that in six months and I won't be hurrying back. The number of people I saw wearing masks completely incorrectly (under nose, around chin etc) was astonishingly high as was the number of people who were completely unable to socially distance in shops. Masks are certainly not a panacea if they are not being worn correctly.

Because majority of people are wearing them incorrectly, reusing masks, wearing cloth ones, touching them all the time, touching their face, putting them in their pocket and taking them back out...

@annabel85

Public Health England data shows people in the 20-39 age bracket are testing positive at higher rates than any other age group (fact despite what the it's the schools spreading it brigade think).

A lot of people in the low end of the 20-39 age bracket will be university and college students and a high percentage of school aged children will be in that demographic as well tbf.

Cases were going up before schools and universities went back, but that's when it's really ripped through cities.

What a strange thing to say! I don't know one school aged child in that demographic - we are talking 20-39 - now I don't know where you live but people leave school at 18 at the latest. Did you actually think about what you were writing at all?

A lot of people in the low end of the 20-39 age bracket will be university and college students and a high percentage of school aged children will be in that demographic as well tbf.

RationalOne she corrected herself to say a high percentage of parents of school aged children.

@ZZGirl

People forget there's tons more testing now compared to when we were in lockdown. The number then would have been a lot lot higher but there wasn't enough tests

Exactly, had the testing rate been as high as it is now then the numbers would have been quite different. It's all about statistics.

Though I'd say only a high percentage of parents of primary school children, if the average age for a first baby is 28 and 50% of children are second or subsequent siblings...

Come and join me in my secondary school. No masks at all. No social distancing. Then you'll know the answer.

Because

Schools don’t wear them, unis don’t wear them, young adults don’t wear then when in pubs, people advise they are exempt when not because they don’t want to wear them, because the mask wearing is not enforced, because for a long time retail staff didn’t need to wear them, and for at least another couple of weeks we won’t know the benefit of wearing them, because people dont wear them properly thinking they can poke their nose out or wear them under their chin, because people don’t SD when not wearing one outside etc etc

In London at least I don't think most people are wearing them.

Because not everyone is wearing them OP.

Are they where you are? Not many are round here.

Schools

@Failingbettereverytime

I went out to a large shopping centre yesterday. First time I had been out anywhere like that in six months and I won't be hurrying back. The number of people I saw wearing masks completely incorrectly (under nose, around chin etc) was astonishingly high as was the number of people who were completely unable to socially distance in shops. Masks are certainly not a panacea if they are not being worn correctly.

I also went to a large indoor shopping centre yesterday and will not be going back again for the reasons you mentioned

I cut short the trip because I didn't feel safe and now I am angry at myself for going.

Why can't people follow the one way signs for walking on the left of the walkways? Why can't they just stop touching the front of their masks, wearing it under their nose or chin or just walking around holding it in their hand?

I am beginning to see from all the evidence around me that there is an increasing dumbing down of society and intelligence levels are not what they were previously.

Because people are not wearing them, or they wear them as chin nappies, or they say they are exempt when they're not because rights innit.., also not keeping their distance, not washing their hands, they don't isolate when they know they should and pretty much generally breaking the rules. And these idiots that walk amongst us make it shit for everyone else.