Expert Explains Face Mask Effects on Skin Health

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Dermatologist dr. Arini Astasari Widodo, Sp.KK warns people to carefully choose the type of face mask for daily use as choosing the wrong one can potentially cause damage to the skin barrier. 

“When choosing to wear a cloth mask, don’t pick those with big gaps such as linen as this type will have more texture and increase the possibility of rubbing and damaging skin barrier,” she said, Antaranews reported. 

The member of the Indonesian Association of Dermatologists and Venereologists (PERDOSKI) suggested people to think about fitment regarding masks which are essentially not overly tight or loose. It is also recommended to clean the facial area or use facial serum to fix the outer layer of the facial skin and most importantly regularly replace masks every 4 hours.

Wearing a mask can change the skin's microbiome, which plays an important role in the skin's barrier to make it appear healthy and radiant, reducing the chances of getting eczema, acne, and all skin inflammations.

The doctor mentioned air ventilation and the microbiome mixing with particles produced from speaking and breathing which changes the balance. 

The effects of microbiome imbalance will only emerge once damage to the skin barrier is introduced marked by sensations of pulled skin and slowly creating skin irritations, acne, or rashes. This has even created a 'maskne' or the acne from wearing masks due to the imbalance condition. 

Read: How to Properly Dispose Medical Mask Waste

ANTARA