A certain Hans Nilson Langseth from Norway holds the record for the longest beard: When he died in 1927, his beard was 5.33 meters. When walking he had to wrap his beard around his waist to avoid stepping on it. In his case it would be clear that an FFP2 mask would in no way work here. Since men in Vienna usually wear significantly shorter but also full beards, many now have to deal with the question of whether the whiskers impair the function of the mask or not.
There are clinic heads who do not allow any alternative. FFP2 masks only protect clean-shaven skin. The specialist in hygiene and microbiology at MedUni Vienna, Hans-Peter Hutter, also emphasized to “Wien heute” that the FFP2 mask must be tight everywhere so that virus-containing particles cannot get in or out: “If it’s a full beard, there will be openings at least in the cheek area. Then they will be able to exit there, which means that external protection is not so guaranteed. So the beard should be gone sooner.
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“No” to a beardless face
But there are people who invest a lot of love and time in the care of their beard or have decided to grow a beard for other reasons. For them the loss of the hairy face jewelry would be very painful. The Viennese star trumpeter Thomas Gansch is one of them.
He likes to do his part to fight the pandemic, but cutting off is out of the question: “No. I made up my mind from the outset to let the beard grow until we can play concerts normally again. ”He and his children were running a bet as to whether he would be the length of a beard of Albus Dumbledore (director of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and magic in the Harry Potter novels) or not – “and I’m at a third,” says Gansch.
“Maximum Barthygiene”
Beard professionals recommend a full shave, but allow at least two alternatives: the first would be a shorter beard. The second alternative would be “maximum hygiene”, said the hairstylist Raffaela Di Donato from the Borbone Barber Club: “It is best if you wear a longer beard and have been out all day before you say hello to your partner or children rinses – maybe with a care shampoo. ”So that would mean that an additional hygiene step would have to be introduced for beard wearers: Come home, wash your hands for at least 30 seconds and then wash your beard.
“Beard off” for FFP2 masks
The mandatory masks are primarily intended to protect other people from viruses, but this is only possible if the mask is also tight and this is not quite the case with beard wearers. Clipping would be the order of the day, says environmental medicine specialist Hutter.
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Scarf or balaclava as an alternative
One thing is certain, an FFP2 mask worn over a beard protects far more than conventional mouth and nose protection. Ultimately, however, the doctor also admits an alternative to shaving, for example in the form of a balaclava or a scarf: “That would definitely be a very simple solution for everyone who has a very strong beard that goes down because it is finished, ”said Hutter.
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