Is the PM2.5 mask good?

Yes, a PM2.5 mask is good since air pollution is one of the major threats in life and lung disease in the world. 

An N95 mask would be great to filter out those PM2.5. It would give a better seal against viruses as well.

If we are just talking about pollution then a PM2.5 mask is good enough. 

The holes in PM2.5 masks are larger and can filter 2.5 diameter particles while an N95, can filter out up to 0.3 microns in diameter. 

But when it comes to viruses, they are much smaller, but most of the times they exist in the air riding on larger particles. The PM2.5 mask can, therefore, provide protection, though not as well as N95.

Why do we need to protect ourselves from PM2.5?

PM2.5 refers to tiny particles or droplets in the air that are two and a half microns in width. One micron is one-thousandth of a millimeter, there are 25,400 microns to one inch, up to forty times smaller than a human hair.

Particles less than 2.5 microns are so small that several thousand of them could fit in a dot.

Particles in the PM2.5 size range can travel deeply into the respiratory tract, reaching the lungs. Our exposure to fine particles can cause short-term health effects such as eye, nose, throat and lung irritation, coughing, sneezing, runny nose and shortness of breath. 

It’s harmful to be exposed to fine particles because they can affect lung function and they can worsen medical conditions such as asthma and heart disease. People with breathing and heart problems, children and the elderly may be particularly sensitive to PM2.5.

After Thoughts

It would be wiser to just get an N95 mask since air-pollution and haze can contain fine particles that are 2.5 microns PM2.5 or smaller and studies have shown that N95 masks do provide good protection against particle pollutants as they are 95% efficient against fine particles that are about 0.1 – 0.3 microns.

You can find PM2.5 Masks on Amazon.