Do sports with a mask, is you contraindicated?

Madrid, sea.(Press Europa) -

The latest update of the World Health Organization (WHO) on the use of masks when exercising, published last December, states that the use of masks during an intensity activity can reduce the ability to make a comfortableBreathing, therefore advising its use and recommends always maintaining social distance.

However, a study published in the 'European Respiratory Journal' recently shows data that could change their minds to WHO.A group of researchers carried out detailed tests on breathing, cardiac activity and exercise performance in a group of 12 people while using a static bicycle with and without a mask.

Although they found differences in some measures between using mask and not using it, they say that none of their results indicates any health risk.This suggests that masks can be used safely during intense exercise, for example, to reduce COVID-19 transmission among people who visit a covered gym.And that its use has only a modest effect on the ability of healthy people to exercise vigorous.

The study was conducted by a team of researchers in which Dr. Elisabetta Salvioni, of the Monzino Cardiological Center (IRCCS) and Dr. Massimo Mapelli and Professor Piergiuseppe Agostoni, of the Monzino Cardiological Center and the University of Milan.

Dr. Salvioni points out: "We know that the main route of coronavirus transmission is through the droplets in breath and it is possible that breathing stronger during exercise can facilitate transmission, especially indoors.Research suggests that using a mask can help prevent the spread of the disease, but there is no clear evidence about whether the masks are safe to use during vigorous exercise, "he adds.

To address this question, the researchers worked with a group of healthy volunteers composed of six women and six men with an average age of 40 years.Each person participated in three rounds of exercise tests: once without using a facial mask, once using a surgical mask and once using a FFP2 mask.

While the volunteers used a static bike, the researchers measured their breathing, heart rate, blood pressure and blood oxygen levels.

The test results showed that the use of a mask had a small effect on volunteers.For example, there was an average reduction of about ten percent in its ability to perform aerobic exercise (according to its "VO2 Pico", which is a measure of its largest possible oxygen consumption).

The results also indicate that this reduction was probably due to the fact that volunteers were a bit more difficult to inhale and exhale through the masks.

Dr. Mapelli says that "this reduction is modest and, more importantly, does not suggest a risk for healthy people who exercise with a facial mask, even when they are working at its maximum capacity.While we wait for more people to vaccinate against COIVD-19, this finding could have practical implications in daily life, for example, potentially making it safer to open roof gyms, "he says.

"However," says, "we must not assume that the same is true for people with a heart or pulmonary condition.We need to do more research to investigate this issue ".

The team is now studying the impact of using a mask while performing daily activities, such as climbing stairs or doing housework, in healthy people and with heart or lung conditions.

Professor Sam Bayat, from the University Hospital of Grenoble, in France, president of the Clinical Respiratory Physiology Group, Exercise and Functional Images of the Breathing (ERS), which did not participate in the investigation, points out that "there are still lagoons in our knowledgeOn how to limit the propagation of COVID-19, but we believe that the masks have a role to play and we are getting used to using masks in public spaces such as stores, trains and buses ".

"Although these results are preliminary and should be confirmed with larger groups of people, they seem to suggest that masks can also be used safely for interior sports and physical activities, with a tolerable impact on performance," he concludes.