Disposable face masks are worn over the nose and mouth to filter the air that we breathe and therefore help protect us against inhalation of hazardous airborne particles and dangerous fumes. They are worn by medical professionals, painters, builders and mining professionals, among others. There are multiple types available including standard 3 ply surgical face masks, US standard N95 mask. N95 respirators and surgical masks (face masks) are examples of personal protective equipment that are used to protect the wearer from airborne particles and from liquid contaminating the face. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) also regulate N95 respirators.
The best disposable face mask, of course, are N95 masks — the gold-standard pandemic masks approved by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to filter out 95 percent of airborne particles. But the CDC recommends that the public not buy N95 masks, to ensure there’s a supply for health-care workers. There are also disposable surgical masks worn by doctors and other health-care professionals that are cleared by the FDA to meet certain standards, but they’re not available to the general public, so they’re off the table, too. What is available are nonmedical masks.
While surgical masks are overall more effective and are considered the gold standard by the CDC, the benefits of cloth face masks should not be overlooked. In reality, most of us are not actually using our disposable masks just once. We’re throwing them back into our purses and pockets, and then fishing them out the next time, we need them. This is where cloth masks have their time to shine. We can throw the dirty one we just wore in the laundry to disinfect it, and then pick up a clean one for next time.
These days, Disposable gloves are made of more than just rubber. It became necessary to find alternatives to the traditional latex glove after it was discovered that many users were developing a latex allergy from wearing latex gloves for extended periods of time. Over time, several different types of disposable gloves have become available.
The most common types of disposable gloves are:
Latex gloves, made of natural rubber
Nitrile gloves, made of synthetic rubber
Vinyl gloves, made of synthetic materials
Neoprene gloves, made of synthetic rubber
Poly gloves, made of polyethylene
Latex gloves are still the disposable glove of choice when it comes to everyday use, but thanks to scientific progress we have a glove for every situation, whether you have a latex allergy or need a pair that can handle toxic chemicals.
Although disposable gloves are worn in doctors' surgeries and by paramedics, they protect the hands only from coarse contamination, such as blood or other bodily fluids. They can protect against contamination with bacteria and viruses only for a very short time.
This is because the material of disposable gloves is actually porous, and the longer you wear them, the easier it is for pathogens to penetrate the supposed protective cover. This is one of the reasons why medical personnel carefully clean and disinfect their hands after using disposable gloves. Disposable gloves expressly do not replace these hygiene rules.
