Hi Dr. Hassabalaa. Thanks for your article and the link to the research. As a scientist and healthcare professional, I just don't understand this debate over masks. If you have sex, you wear a condom to prevent sexually transmitted diseases or pregnancy. Why should masks be any different to our lungs? Is going out naked the same as putting a barrier over your nose and mouths during a pandemic? I doubt it; there is something covering our body’s holes. 100 years after the Spanish Flu, we have learned nothing. Technology has changed, but our desire to bicker and stay ignorant rather than prudent remains the same.

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As for masks being a "vaccine" for the coronavirus, I agree with Nancy that your title is "clickbaity", but I don't expect any more from Medium since it changed. It is true that drugs in small doses can be medicine. Homeopathy is based upon that principle. Warfarin is a popular blood thinner, but it was 1st used as rat poison in large doses. Viagra was 1st a heart medicine before it was a "get-it-on" wonder drug. I doubt, masks will be in this pantheon of vaccines. But, you do have a sliver of truth. If the coronavirus doesn't kill you or make you sick, masks can provide viral immunity by reducing the viral load on the body. With the small load, your body can fight the infection and produce antibodies and memory T-Cells.

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Bottom line, I would rather go play outside with a condom or mask over my face rather than naked in the subways or at school while COVID-19 lurks in strangers. Our part is to wear proper protection and the society's job is to keep the space well ventilated and provide safety measures. That's it. How hard can that be? Incredibly difficult for Americans, and easier for nations like Korea.

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Peace.