Do you still wear a face mask when you go shopping or on public transportation, for example? If this is the case, you are a minority, but for how long?

Millions of us stopped wearing masks in January when the government eliminated the legal requirement for them. However, hospital trusts in Cambridgeshire, Hampshire, Nottinghamshire, Devon, and Wales have reissued recommendations advising patients to wear masks in response to a rising number of cases.

The Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust in Exeter, for instance, began providing disposable face masks and antiviral hand gel to all visitors last week.

Dr. David Strain, an honorary specialist in medicine for older adults at the Trust, told Good Health, “We’ve reinstated the use of face masks for everyone, which I believe is a sensible approach.

The objective is to protect vulnerable patients at a time when one in twenty persons has Covid.

Infection rates are on the rise across Europe, fueled by Omicron sub-variants that are believed to be much more contagious than the BA.2 strain that caused a record 4.1 million infections in the UK in April.

Consequently, governments are reevaluating face mask guidelines.

Former French health minister Brigitte Bourguignon recently stated that people have a ‘civic duty to wear masks in crowded places, such as on public transportation, at work, and in stores. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has warned that face masks ‘will play a bigger role’ in Germany in the coming months.

Meanwhile, the government of Cyprus announced that wearing face masks indoors will become required.

Should the UK, therefore, follow suit? Cases are, in fact, on the rise, in part because the new strains of Omicron, BA.4 and BA.5, appear to be more transmissible than their predecessors.

Because alterations to the protein on the virus’s spike make it simpler for the virus can attach to host cells, it is better able to avoid immunity from vaccines and past infections.

Cases in England have doubled in the past month, reaching 1.8 million as of June 24, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Additionally, hospitalizations are increasing. Last week, according to NHS England, there were 10,658 hospitalized patients, up from 3,838 on June 4.

For this reason, all seven health boards in Wales require or encourage hospital visitors to wear face masks.

Many GP clinics, care homes, and hospitals throughout the United Kingdom have reinstated the mask requirement.

But should these rules be altered not only in hospital settings, but also in supermarkets, movie theatres, and restaurants?

Danny Altmann, an immunology professor at Imperial College London, believes that this is now essential. Most of us working on Covid-19 were shocked that masks have not remained essential in healthcare and strongly recommended in other enclosed contexts, such as schools and public transportation,” he told Good Health.

When in public or near proximity to others, he wears a mask and only removes it to drink or eat. “We are in the midst of a large outbreak, and BA.5 is exponentially more contagious than previous strains, causing significant sickness,” he adds.

Professor Altmann says that there is a risk not just of illness and hospitalization, but also of developing debilitating extended Covid, which produces symptoms such as lethargy and brain fog that can last for months.

“During the so-called ‘mild’ Omicron wave of 2022, there were roughly three-quarters of a million new cases of extended Covid. Why would you risk not wearing a mask?’ he inquires.

It is such a controversial topic that a consultant surgeon at a teaching hospital in southern England who opposes the resumption of mask-wearing would only speak to Good Health on the condition of anonymity out of fear of criticism from patients and colleagues.

The surgeon stated, “I realize this is an unpopular opinion, but I believe masks should only be worn in medical settings.” We must learn how to coexist with this infection.

The majority of those infected with Covid will experience no symptoms or mild sickness, and we have an effective vaccination program and pharmacological therapy to treat more severe symptoms.

These treatments include antiviral medications such as nirmatrelvir, ritonavir, remdesivir, and molnupiravir, which are accessible to individuals at risk of developing a severe Covid-19 infection. This includes individuals with Down syndrome and those undergoing certain cancer treatments.

According to the surgeon, there are compelling considerations against masks.

Mask-wearing can offer patients a false sense of security, preventing them from taking precautions such as isolating themselves if they have symptoms.

The constant covering of faces impairs social interaction and the ability to recognize and identify others. It can cause some people, particularly the elderly who may already have hearing problems, to feel alone.’

Dr. Michael Lewis, a lecturer at Cardiff University’s School of Psychology, concurs that mask-wearing influences how individuals interact.

Face masks make it more difficult to read facial expressions, but this effect is slightly mitigated by the increased use of the upper half of the face for communication — for example, people grin more with their eyes when wearing a face mask.