Masks have become so popular that some manufacturers make them purely for fashionable use, with no protective function. In Taiwan, citizens say masks keep their faces warm in the winter and offer a sense of protection from air pollution, including any airborne germs.
Philippine motorcycle riders wear masks to deflect vehicular exhausts in heavy traffic. Japanese women mask their faces on days when they don’t have time to put on makeup. Japanese wear masks when feeling sick as a courtesy to stop any sneezes from landing on other people. That’s because Asians, especially in Japan, China and Taiwan, have worn masks for a host of cultural and environmental reasons, including non-medical ones, since at least the 1950s. The tiny surgical aids are less common in Western countries despite growing outbreaks in Europe and the United States.
Face masks are considered by many a useful way to stop the contraction and spread of the new coronavirus.
