Face masks may protect you from staph bacteria

According to a recent study, face masks appear to provide important protection against drug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteria.

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health tracked 101 hog farm workers and 79 household members for four months, taking nasal swabs and asking questions about face mask use.

The findings of the study are published in the Journal of Environmental Health Perspectives.

The researchers found that for workers who wore face masks consistently during the four-month study, witnessed a 50 to 70 percent reduction in the likelihood of finding dangerous, livestock-derived S. aureus strains in their swabs and household members appeared to be protected too.

"Face masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE) could be effective in reducing occupational exposure to livestock-associated S. aureus and preventing the spread of these bacteria to workers and their families," said study's lead author Christopher D. Heaney.

The chronic use of antibiotics to treat and prevent diseases encourages the proliferation of antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains, including strains that can cause serious illness or death when they infect people.