It has been reported that side effects of all-day mask wearing range from:
- Headaches
- Increased airway resistance
- Carbon dioxide accumulation
- Hypoxia
- And other serious life-threatening complications
Because of this, all individuals, especially those who have cardiovascular or pulmonary function issues, must be assessed by a physician and approved before wearing an N95 mask. This is because the mask can:
- Have a negative impact on cardiopulmonary capacity
- Impair physical and occupational activities
- Impair quality of life
Side effects vary based on the type of mask worn, ranging from cloth or paper masks to those with increased filtering, like the N95 model. (Blaylock: Face Masks Pose Serious Risks To The Healthy (technocracy.news); Could wearing a mask for long periods be detrimental to health? – The Jerusalem Post (jpost.com))
According to a recent study involving five healthy male and five healthy female subjects wearing four different types of face masks, results showed that the subjects experienced significant changes in surface temperature and absolute humidity on their masks, lower average heart rates with treated masks, and other symptoms, such as: feeling tight, itchy, odorous, and fatigued (Effects of wearing N95 and surgical facemasks on heart rate, thermal stress and subjective sensations (nih.gov)).
Another recent study involving 12 healthy male subjects reported decreased pulmonary function when wearing various masks while exercising (Effects of surgical and FFP2/N95 face masks on cardiopulmonary exercise capacity | SpringerLink).
Other challenges posed by wearing a mask all day include general discomfort; necessity of donning and doffing, which increases the risk of cross contamination; and impaired visual field. For more support and resources for all-day mask wearers, see our recent blog Tips For Employees Who Wear Masks All Day.