A Wayne State University study finds that wearing a face shield and a mask is about as safe as wearing a mask alone.
The study simulated the spread of the Coronavirus in a lab by spraying bacteria on petri dishes that were either covered by nothing, a mask, a face shield, or both.
Doctor Teena Chopra is the lead author of the study. She says the findings are limited by the fact that researchers weren’t testing the actual transmission of COVID-19 on real people.
“Keep in mind this is a lab simulated model which can have shortcomings than the real model because we use your bacterial colony count as compared to a virus but it was very close to the real model.”
Chopra says the study’s findings are in line with other research that suggests masks alone provide strong protection against COVID-19. She says she will no longer urge people to wear face shields on top of their masks.