NEW YORK — Before the coronavirus, it was customary to cover your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing. But what do you do when your nose and mouth are already covered by a face mask?
Holy Name Medical Center Chief Infectious Disease doctor, Dr. Suraj Saggar identified wearing a mask as perhaps the safest way to stop the spread of virus particles emitted by a sneeze or cough.
Etiquette expert Thomas Farley called sneezing into one's mask the politest way to sneeze in the coronavirus era.
Both the doctor and the manners consultant also reminded us that a soiled mask starts to lose its effectiveness, thereby requiring a replacement.
When without a backup face-covering, Dr. Saggar advocated one sneeze into a tissue, an elbow, a napkin, or an outdoor area twenty feet away from anyone else. He does recognize that this isn't always possible.
If you do sneeze into a tissue or sleeve, clean your hands, throw away that napkin or tissue in a trash can, or wash the crook of one's elbow, or the shirt covering it.
Bottom line: you absolutely want to cover your sneeze with something.