Face masks have become standard when going outside. Health experts have advised the general public to wear them in order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. To prevent a supply shortage of masks for health workers, people are told that they can use regular cloth as DIY masks. Several options are now available online including clear mouth mask products that use a transparent plastic sheet. Some of these are pure plastic while others have fabric sewn along the sides to keep particles trapped inside. A lot of people of finding this kind of design more preferable to the usual nose and mouth cover for the following reasons:
Child-friendly
Many children don’t have the capacity to fully understand what has been going on. The changes brought about by quarantine restrictions have been hard on them as it disrupts their habits such as playing with friends and going to school. The young ones may even develop an aversion to regular face masks as these prevent them to recognizing the people around them. Some might cry when adults approach thinking that they are in the presence of strangers. With partially clear masks, they will be able to see who is under the masks while keeping them protected.
Lip Reading
The deaf and hard of hearing find ways around their auditory challenges. Since it’s hard for them to hear what others are saying, they use their eyes to read people’s lips and get a better sense of the words coming out of their mouths. This, of course, becomes difficult when the whole mouth is covered by a mask. People with deaf loved ones might want to switch over to the clear mask to remove the visual barrier while keeping the viral blockade to a certain degree. This is also common in facilities that cater to the hard of hearing community.
Better Communication
Others may not have issues with their hearing or with fearful children but they still prefer clear mouth masks. These simply foster better communication. After all, face to face communication is largely affected by visual cues including facial expressions. We can convey more to our companions if they could see our faces instead of just half of it. It’s not just about our words but also our moods and our emotions. We would also know how to act around people if we could read their faces instead of only relying on what they say, especially when it comes to introverts.
