ISO the thinnest, lightest kids masks

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I cannot believe you are complaining about your kids wearing masks to keep them safe from irresponsible adults. I cannot believe you'd send your unvaccinated kid to camp and other activities and not care about their health.

Thinnest/lightest are disposables for safety. Plenty of options on amazon. Otherwise, any fake 1-2 piece fabric ones are fine if you don't care about safety.

NP. If my biggest concern was my kid being exposed to Covid, I would keep them home. My concern for mental health outweighs concern about Covid. If I were to be particularly concerned about a respiratory virus that is currently circulating in kids, it would be RSV.

https://www.cdc.gov/surveillance/nrevss/rsv/natl-trend.html

[Anonymous]

We like Athleta kids masks and Airism by Uniqlo.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As long as case numbers remain low I plan to send my kid in a cotton muslin mask.

If we head up out of the CDC blue or hospitalizations spike or something I will go back to our regular multi layer masks.

The teachers at our school are vaccinated (they all told classes so proudly as they got the shot) and my kids are low risk.

You are really selfish. How about the other kids in the school not vaccinated? Their health doesn't matter because you want to pretend your kid are low risk. If you kids are in person, seeing friends and family they are high risk. And, you high risk behavior puts our kids at high risk. Wearing a good mask is the least you can do to keep all our kids safe.

False.

No, true, if your kids are in person and being exposed to multiple other people they are at high risk.

You are conflating being at risk of contracting covid and I think Pp is talking about risk of actually being affected. First of all, case rates are so low in this area I don’t think anyone is at high risk of contracting covid..but secondly I have seen zero evidence of typical kids being high risk.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m really seething over the CDC guidelines released today. I can’t believe we are going to make our kids wear masks for another school year while adults are able to be out at concerts, bars, etc. Ugh- I’m so angry!! My DD has enjoyed indoor camps and lots of fun summer activities mask-free and can’t believe she has to go back to a mask for school!

So… if my kids are required to keep wearing masks in school I’d like to find the thinnest possible ones. I’m not worried about the effectiveness. I’m not scared of COVID for my kids and it’s not their responsibility to keep the adults safe who have the choice of a vaccine. Anyone else looking for the bare minimum to meet the requirements?

Why do you think kids will have to mask? Do you really think only 10 states will require masks on kids while the rest don’t?

https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2021/07/09/cdc-fall-school-opening-rules-flexible-masks/7921535002/

“ At first read, it seems CDC is mandating masks in schools for those who are unvaccinated. At a minimum this means that all kids under 12, because the vaccines are not authorized for this group yet, as well as those teens who have not yet gotten the vaccine. (CDC says those under 2 don’t need masks.)

But a more close read reveals that CDC left a lot of nuance. In several places in the new guidance, CDC says that decisions on masking and other controls should be based on multiple factors, including level of community transmission, level of vaccination coverage in the community and local outbreaks.

Some might read this as problematic because it’s ambiguous, but it actually reflects the fact that the system needs this sort of flexibility because local conditions are vastly different.”

I am expecting masks to be recommended rather than required.

[Anonymous]

Most likely the vaccine will be approved for kids under 12 within the end of the year so your kid might only need to wear a mask if for a month or two.

[Anonymous]

Old Navy masks are pretty easy to wear and didn't bother me much at all.

[Anonymous]

As we know by now, the CDC guidelines are not uniformly adopted by the states. My guess is that most states and localities will take into consideration the rates before mandating masks for kids under 12.

FWIW, we have tried many types of masks and my kids (youngest is 3 yo) told me they prefer the fitted ones made of layers of meltblown/polypropelene fabric. And I have found these types of masks more breathable for myself. Surgical masks are made of the same fabric but they move around and slip off small faces so that's why the fitted ones work for us.

While the risk to children under 12 is very low, having my kids mask up to protect children and adults who are at higher risk seems a small burden to bear. For some children who died of Covid, they had an underlying condition but their families were not aware of it because it had not yet manifested itself in the form of a diagnosis. And not all school employees choose to be vaccinated.

Anyhow, adults who have the choice to get vaccinated but are hesitant or refuse to do so still deserve our compassion. The information stream about Covid has been all over the place and it is understandable that many people do not trust the information about the vaccines. Public health is about doing what is best for the greater good, and it includes protecting those who choose not to get vaccinated.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Most likely the vaccine will be approved for kids under 12 within the end of the year so your kid might only need to wear a mask if for a month or two.

you think I'm going to vaccinate my kid? I'd rather bury my head in the sand.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most likely the vaccine will be approved for kids under 12 within the end of the year so your kid might only need to wear a mask if for a month or two.

you think I'm going to vaccinate my kid? I'd rather bury my head in the sand.

Yes, it sounds like it!

[Anonymous]

Here’s an example of a one layer gauze mask on Etsy. I am fully vaccinated and this is what I wear when required to wear a mask somewhere. Very breathable.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/914025751/1layer-light-gauze-mask-breathe-easy?ref=shop_home_active_1&crt=1

A pp suggested KN94 masks. My older ds wears a kn95 and it is really comfortable for him - more so than surgical masks or regular cloth masks, and the shape keeps it away from the face, which he prefers. I think that is also a reasonable suggestion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As we know by now, the CDC guidelines are not uniformly adopted by the states. My guess is that most states and localities will take into consideration the rates before mandating masks for kids under 12.

FWIW, we have tried many types of masks and my kids (youngest is 3 yo) told me they prefer the fitted ones made of layers of meltblown/polypropelene fabric. And I have found these types of masks more breathable for myself. Surgical masks are made of the same fabric but they move around and slip off small faces so that's why the fitted ones work for us.

While the risk to children under 12 is very low, having my kids mask up to protect children and adults who are at higher risk seems a small burden to bear. For some children who died of Covid, they had an underlying condition but their families were not aware of it because it had not yet manifested itself in the form of a diagnosis. And not all school employees choose to be vaccinated.

Anyhow, adults who have the choice to get vaccinated but are hesitant or refuse to do so still deserve our compassion. The information stream about Covid has been all over the place and it is understandable that many people do not trust the information about the vaccines. Public health is about doing what is best for the greater good, and it includes protecting those who choose not to get vaccinated.

Eh, I would definitely agree with you that kids should hold out and mask a bit longer if we had solid evidence that they were necessary to keep kids safe in school. But knowing that spread was low in many European countries that didn’t mask kids, seeing the data on schools that had mask mandates vs mask optional, the discrepancy between the WHO and CDC guidance, knowing kids can go to restaurants/indoor pools/stores unmasked… Without some really compelling data it just doesn’t make sense now.

[Anonymous]

Can anyone link to a specific mask? I don’t care about effectiveness, just want the absolute lightest that looks like a real
Mask.

[Anonymous]

A lightweight, breathable and moisture wicking fabric is polyester chiffon. Cotton muslin, gauze or cheesecloth is very breathable but if the wearer is chatty, moisture will build up on the material. Etsy or eBay have a lot of single layer masks made with these fabrics.

And one can take an n95, KN95, or other mask and cut away all the internal layers and just leave the outer layer. And these masks can be washed (it’s just not recommended because doing so compromises the fabric’s ability to filter).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can anyone link to a specific mask? I don’t care about effectiveness, just want the absolute lightest that looks like a real
Mask.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08XBKQKWH/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Cloth masks are not approved or regulated by any health agency and depending on the tightness of the weave, can be pretty useless to protect against viruses. Those with a tight weave are hard to breathe through.

That's why disposable hospital, lab or construction masks are always better. Get a N95, KN95, or, for a child's face, a child KF94. They are certified and regulated by their respective countries (the standards of which are just as high as in the US) and are much lighter and easier to breather in than cloth masks - and they're also SAFER.

You don't need to throw them away after each use, as long as they're not wet (which alters the inner lining). Just buy several packs, and rotate through them, laying the used ones in the sun for a few hours to kill germs (or a clean, dry place for several days). Throw them away when they get too dirty.

- research scientist used to wearing masks.

You obviously didn’t read the OP

Yes, they did, but didn’t feel the need to enable a selfish jerk. Don’t worry. Plenty of other selfish jerks will be along to give her suggestions. Winkyface.