Dear Alice,
What the heck is the deal with people in Japan wearing surgical masks? Where I come from (Canada), only doctors, dentists and other health professionals wear masks, and only on the job. You never see anyone out in public wearing a face mask. In fact, if you tried to enter a store with one on your face, you’d be mistaken for a robber and someone would call the police. Yet here in Japan, it’s not at all unusual to see people out and about wearing masks. And it could be my imagination, but I get the feeling they’ve become even more common in recent years. I’d like to know whether these masks are effective. Do Japanese catch fewer colds?
Allan M., Tokyo
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