OPINION: EOHA pamphlet… oh no pt.2

This is a 3-part series of articles about the EOHA and their anti-mask/anti-vaccine crusade as expressed currently through their new pamphlet campaign. In case you did not read part 1 you can find it here . While I did a lot of “googling” on my own, I was very lucky to have the support and guidance of two very generous medical researchers: Dr. Richard Bazinet and Dr. Tara Moriarty who each have research labs at the University of Toronto.

The Masks are harmful to your health section does not cite any verifiable studies at all but…

…right out of the gate it makes outdated and incorrect statements like this. We have known since the 1990s that brain cells regenerate throughout our lifetimes.

The claim of “compromised mental function…” does not establish what “compromised mental function” is nor does it cite studies that support or clarify this statement. 

I don’t buy this for a minute but let’s look at it. In reality, we all live with bouts of “compromised mental function”: the senior who can’t find his keys, the youth recovering from a night of debauchery who can’t pass his test, a busy parent who forgets the lunch on the counter (or child in grocery store!!!), a person in love. We all have periods of compromised mental function and so when a claim of CMF is made it must be defined properly and backed up with good science.

Any perceived harm from mask-wearing does not apply to the vast majority of us who wear them for short periods of time in and out of stores, during hospital visits etc. 

When mask-wearing is necessary for long periods, most of the reading I’ve done indicates that you should use masks that are comfortable and well fitted, take breaks and carefully remove the mask in a safe area, wash hands, hydrate, brush your teeth. Change masks (at least daily or more often if they are damp). Currently the advice is medical grade surgical masks or N95’s.

In the meantime, the ‘research inclined’ among you might want to investigate how many people over the past 2 years have been in the hospital sick, due to masks? How many people have been sick at home and unable to work due to masks? How many people have become mentally challenged due to masks? And then compare this number to those who have died, been hospitalized and or who have had long-term illness due to Covid.

Here is an alarming list of mask-induced conditions from the EOHA pamphlet:

There are so many studies refuting the Hypoxia (O2 deficiency) and Hypercapnia (CO2 toxicity) claims that I can’t believe this pamphlet persists in making these statements. This has been proven over and over to be incorrect. The net is full of videos showing pulse oximeters on the fingers of the masked. It is the same tech that is used to measure oxygenation in hospitals and none of them show oxygen deprivation with a mask. Even athletes play sports with masks on and you don’t see them falling down during a game!

Otherwise, these claims have not been proven in peer-reviewed studies. If your masks are clean and well fitted you should be fine. As for headaches and migraines and anxiety, take off your mask once in a while if wearing it for long periods. Masks could exacerbate some conditions and if you already suffer from one of these, speak to your doctor. I can’t tell you what to do and neither can the EOHA.

***One thing that the pamphlet does not deal with is masks and LONG COVID. The seriousness of your Covid infection is mediated by the “infectious dose” of the virus you are exposed to. Masks can reduce the viral load (dose) which in turn can reduce the chances of a severe Covid infection and or Long Covid.

The pamphlet makes a big jump from its list of purported mask-wearing dangers to this:

“Over time” is not a very scientific statement. It is impossible to quantify what “over time” means and therefore there is no way of measuring any possible medical fallout. However, any of these (except cancer) including death can be directly or indirectly caused by Covid in a matter of weeks. And take heed, this is as true today, with relaxed mandates as it was in 2021. 

I googled: “can wearing a mask lead to: cancer or heart problems or neurological disorders” and I found nothing alarming in my search. You would think that if these were legitimate claims, the relevant information would be easy to find and verified by major medical institutions.

The common-sense approach to evaluating mask safety is to consider the many people who wear masks regularly for work and who are not filling the hospitals with mask-induced problems and conditions. These include doctors and nurses, dentists and dental workers, construction workers, people who work in dusty or toxic environments like paint, sanding, chemicals and scientists in some research environments ;-). These are people who wear masks all day long, every day for years without negative outcomes.

If you are interested in more information on Covid and asking real scientists your questions, consider joining these informal “kitchen table” discussions online. They are free to join on Wednesday evenings from 8-10 pm. You have to sign up beforehand here.

Join me for part 3 (out of 3) of EOHA pamphlet… oh no for the creepy trifecta of Masks Decrease Immunity, Masks Themselves Are Toxic and Masks are Especially Damaging to Children on Wednesday, April 6th.