So masks work -> P&G takes a financial hit
 

P&G reported that cold medicine sales were down 45% from a year ago.

More Masks Means Fewer Germs, Hitting P&G’s Cold-Medicine Sales

So I consider this a hard data point to support the theory of
mask wearing slows spread of virus germs
including covid and flu

the anti maskers can !@#$%^&*()

Here's upper respiratory data from a molecular diagnostic system also illustrating the impact.

Syndromic Trends

It might have something to do with social distancing in general and avoiding crowds in particular. I strongly suspect that's the case for my family.

You will also soon hear that studies are beginning to show that the masks aren't as effective as they need to be and countries in Europe are (or soon will be) requiring N95 masks or equivalent.

anti-maskers are annoying but so are rude comments.

And yet the squares are going to have festivals next month.....

Personally, I think that businesses that provide hand sanitizer stations go far in preventing the spread of viruses in general. I would love for them to continue this practice. I'm more likely to use it if it's at the entrance to a store or restaurant.

Masks maybe some of the cause and effect, but there is a better reason.

Many have not left their homes, working from home, kids not in school to transfer the cold.

Then there are the thousands upon thousands who no longer have income.
Do you buy meds, cold medicine, or feed your children.

Children always win, P&G zero.

Working for 5 months exposed 60 hours a week, wearing multiple masks at a time, didn’t help hundreds of healthcare workers. But that’s just first hand experience.
Not saying masks don’t work for those who may or may not be exposed everyday in TV.
But there is a difference when wearing a mask with a less than 5% exposure, compared to 100%.

Closely working with 186 people everyday, many still got sick, flu, colds, and yes Covid. All with more protective gear than one could imagine. And that mask didn’t save some of them.

Far more believable and likely reason for the drop in colds, etc.

I have a strong supposition that you are correct about the variables of distance, crowd avoidance, and the MANY other variables that are never mentioned, never studied in any scientific manner (I see a LOT of "follow the science", and the "studies" I have managed to find are so flawed in relation to the controls and the variables, even the how the populations were set up, just a total grade of "F" if submitted in the very first intro to research class required in any grad school ! The kind you see in the headlines of the super market check out line magazines...LOL ! Headline: "Study SHOWS".... well, you can make a study show anything you'd like it to, just like graphs, depending on the axis's, you can make a convincing graph to convince a LOT of people... LOL ! Skeptic me, but would be great to get some real scientific data...maybe someday they will laugh at us ? Washing down every grocery item we take into our homes, wearing gloves to the super market, to the mail stations, have seen two auto now with masks duct taped over the ventilation slats on the dash ? What's that about, any one know ? Have the tracing they have done shown the numbers of people contracting it due to unmasked ventilation slats in their autos is greater than the "norm" for other risks ? Feeling like a mushroom (if you know something about mushroom growing you'll get the humor...LOL !)

Absolutely. But there are those who worship at the altar of the holy mask, want everyone else to join their church and will find any lame reason to support their belief

Awesome!

So P&G cold medicine is national, and not job specific, nor age specific. The sales are rural and urban, adults and children, and represents a data point that at the national level, generalized behavioral changes have made a difference, measureable enough to be seen. Also, though not publically available information, coach k's medical center has used less than 50% of their flu vaccine supply which was ordered in Oct. And the same behaviors which have limited covid spread have limited the flu as well. Also a not well publicized point, you can't get a COVID vaccine shot if you have had any other vaccine shot, including the flu, in the prior 14 days.

I agree that its not just the mask but the whole reinforced behavioral changes which have caused the reduction, so my bad for sensationalizing one particular aspect over the other . Given the increased infectious rate of the mutations showing up however, the behaviors continuing will be needed even more to slow the spread. . .

No need to worry about Procter & Gamble. They also make Charmin and Dawn.

It occurred to me at the beginning of Covid that Dawn would be good for handwashing. I figured if Dawn could cut through that oil and save those baby ducks, Dawn could cut through the virus. (Please don’t drink it though.)

[QUOTE=CoachKandSportsguy;1890687]P&G reported that cold medicine sales were down 45% from a year ago.

More Masks Means Fewer Germs, Hitting P&G’s Cold-Medicine Sales

So I consider this a hard data point to support the theory of
mask wearing slows spread of virus germs
including covid and flu

Absolutely, there is always more logic to the story...not just flimsy dirty useless masks, that people spend more time touching and adjusting, then touching something else...but they can believe whatever they want...

By now everyone should be carrying one in their bag. Leaving the house nowadays should be......mask-check, sanitizer-check.....plastic gloves- maybe.