I've been wearing N95s ever since they became affordable (again) in the fall of 2020. I don't like masks, but if I have to wear one, I'm going to wear the best one and one that actually protects me. I mean this in the general sense of all particulate filters/respirators, rather than strictly N95s.
I currently wear the 3M Aura. It fits very well, my glasses never fog up and it quite easy to breath through. I used an oximeter during a long 8hr session of wearing it and had no impact on my blood oxygen levels. I work out with these masks as well and it's fine, although I do need a bit more rest in between sets towards the end of my workout. As a bonus the headstraps don't just make it fit better, when I remove it temporarily, it sits around my neck like a scarf, rather than hanging off my ears under my chin.
The masks may be disposable, but they also last long enough. If you get 5 and wear one each day of the week, then store them in a tupperware box, you can get a week's wear out of each one. $2-3 per week to be protected is a good deal.
I've tried to give my extras away to family and friends and I've found some of them weirdly resistant. They're fine wearing cloth or surgical masks, but not these. I know there's no chance of getting everyone to wear these, but I don't think anybody should be wearing anything but.
I wonder if some city/country somewhere could supply N95s to the entire population and strictly mandate them for a month whether they could stamp out Omicron.
Auras are great, mainly because of the nose padding. It seems to be slightly anti-slip in addition to adding some comfort. What's more shocking is that they very closely resemble a design that was made specifically for consumers around 2008 for dealing with pandemic situations, but somehow we're still debating over whether masks even work 13 years later.
I currently wear the 3M Aura. It fits very well, my glasses never fog up and it quite easy to breath through. I used an oximeter during a long 8hr session of wearing it and had no impact on my blood oxygen levels. I work out with these masks as well and it's fine, although I do need a bit more rest in between sets towards the end of my workout. As a bonus the headstraps don't just make it fit better, when I remove it temporarily, it sits around my neck like a scarf, rather than hanging off my ears under my chin.
The masks may be disposable, but they also last long enough. If you get 5 and wear one each day of the week, then store them in a tupperware box, you can get a week's wear out of each one. $2-3 per week to be protected is a good deal.
I've tried to give my extras away to family and friends and I've found some of them weirdly resistant. They're fine wearing cloth or surgical masks, but not these. I know there's no chance of getting everyone to wear these, but I don't think anybody should be wearing anything but.
I wonder if some city/country somewhere could supply N95s to the entire population and strictly mandate them for a month whether they could stamp out Omicron.