How to fit and wear a face mask

Masks are most effective if they fit the face closely. Use masks that have bendable nose strips and adjustable ear loops or bands. This helps you fit the mask snuggly to your face, so air and breath move through the mask, not around the edges.

You should feel warm air going out the front of the mask when you breathe out. You shouldn't feel your breath coming out under the edges of the mask. While it may feel like more work to breathe through a respirator or medical mask, the amount of oxygen you breathe into your body and the amount of carbon dioxide you breathe out doesn't change.

Healthy adults may have minor physical changes, such as a small change in breathing rate, while wearing a face mask. This is more likely with respirators than with surgical masks. But these changes don't last or cause problems for most healthy adults.

With all masks, your face may feel warmer or more humid under the mask.