For more information on our recent data notice, please click here

Menu
Search

Exercised Over Nothing: Masks Don’t Impair Lung Function During Physical Activity

While they might feel uncomfortable, researchers report face masks do not significantly change the actual work of breathing or the flow of oxygen and carbon dioxide when worn while exercising

November 16, 2020  |  

​Wearing a face mask helps limit the spread of COVID-19 by reducing respiratory droplets and aerosols spewed into the air when people breathe, talk, laugh, sneeze or cough. But the physical barrier created by masks has prompted concerns that they might impair the cardiopulmonary system by making it harder to breathe, by altering the flow of inhaled oxygen and exhaled carbon dioxide and by increasing dyspnea — a medical term that describe shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, especially during physical activity.

In a new study, published November 16, 2020 in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society, a team of American and Canadian researchers concluded that while sensations of dyspnea might increase, there is little empirical evidence that wearing a face mask significantly diminishes lung function, even when worn during heavy exercise.

woman running while masked

Wearing a mask while exercising may feel uncomfortable, but research shows doing so does not impair lung function. Photo credit: Getty Images

“There might be a perceived greater effort with activity, but the effects of wearing a mask on the work of breathing, on gases like oxygen and CO2 in blood or other physiological parameters are small, often too small to be detected,” said the study’s first author Susan Hopkins, MD, PhD, professor of medicine and radiology at University of California San Diego School of Medicine.

“There’s also no evidence to support any differences by sex or age in physiological responses to exercise while wearing a face mask,” added Hopkins, who specializes in exercise physiology and the study of lungs under stress.

The single exception, the authors note, may be persons with severe cardiopulmonary disease in which any added resistance to breathing or minor changes in blood gases could prompt dyspnea great enough to affect exercise capacity.

“In such cases, these individuals might feel too uncomfortable to exercise, and that should be discussed with their doctor,” Hopkins said. “However, the fact that these individuals are at great risk should they contract COVID-19 must also be considered.”

The researchers came to their conclusions following a review of all known scientific literature published that examined the effects of various face masks and respiratory loading devices on physiological and perceptual responses to physical activity. These studies assessed multiple factors, such as work of breathing (the quantified energy expended to inhale and exhale), arterial blood gases, effects on muscle blood flow and fatigue, cardiac function and flow of blood to the brain.

For healthy persons, the effects of wearing a mask on these physiological markers were minimal, no matter what type of mask was worn or the degree of exercise. The authors also said age played no significant influencing role among adults. Gender differences were deemed inconsequential.

“Wearing a face mask can be uncomfortable,” said Hopkins. “There can be tiny increases in breathing resistance. You may re-inhale warmer, slightly enriched CO2 air. And if you’re exercising, the mask can cause your face to become hot and sweaty.

“But these are sensory perceptions. They do not impact cardiopulmonary function in healthy people. So while dyspnea might be increased with a mask, you have to weigh that against the reduced risk of contracting COVID-19, knowing that the physiology is essentially unchanged.”

Co-authors include: Paolo B. Dominelli, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada; Christopher K. Davis, UC San Diego and Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego; Jordan Guenette and William Sheel, University of British Columbia; Andrew M. Luks and Erik R. Swenson, University of Washington; Yannick Molgat-Seon, University of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada; Rui Carlos Sá, UC San Diego; and Michael K. Stickland, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada.

Funding for this research came, in part, from the National Institutes of Health (grants HL-119201, HL-129990), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada.




Media Contact

Scott LaFee
858-249-0431
slafee@health.ucsd.edu

Share This Article


Related News

3/1/2021
A repurposed drug used to treat arthritis did not significantly improve the outcomes of patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia. Tocilizumab did not significantly improve clinical status or mortality ...
5/15/2020
The NIH has launched a major clinical trial to assess the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine and antibiotic azithromycin as a treatment for COVID-19. The trial will recruit 2,000 participants at 30 sites ...
5/5/2020
Program makes COVID-19 testing available to thousands of students in effort to track the novel coronavirus and better position the campus to resume in-person activities in the fall.
4/29/2020
UC San Diego Health has launched a Phase III clinical trial to assess whether a medication used to treat rheumatoid might also have therapeutic value for patient with COVID-19 who have developed or ar ...



Follow Us