Like the WHO, the Academy of Medicine contradicts the Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, who on Thursday recommended that the French "no longer use an artisanal mask".

"These variants are transmitted in the same way. We therefore guard against them in the same way," said Yves Buisson of the Academy of Medicine, Saturday on Europe 1.

INTERVIEW

French health authorities are divided on the effectiveness of the fabric mask made at home to limit contamination with the coronavirus and its new variants.

The Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, recommended to the French "not to use any more of artisanal mask" Thursday evening on TF1, because this one would not be sufficiently filtering.

The next day, the World Health Organization (WHO) took the opposite view of the minister by indicating that the fabric masks were still as effective, even in the face of new variants, because the mode of transmission remains the same.

Same story with the Academy of Medicine.

"These variants are still Covid coronaviruses, they are exactly the same size and are transmitted in exactly the same way. So, we protect ourselves against them in exactly the same way," said Yves Buisson, president of the Covid group. -19 from the Academy, Saturday on Europe 1.

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"The government wants to harden the method without having scientific reason"

For the scientist, one should not add confusion to the confusion.

"People who had stockpiled cloth masks or masks that they had made themselves are being asked to put all of this in the trash to buy surgical masks. This is a measure that risks being poorly accepted. , poorly followed, "he continues.

"The same government which said at the start that it should not be worn now wants to harden the method without having any scientific reason to explain this hardening ..."

For Yves Buisson, therefore, "it is not by putting on more filtering masks that the variant will be stopped" but rather "by respecting the instructions for wearing the compulsory mask in public spaces and respecting" barrier gestures.

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Among these gestures, the Academy of Medicine recommends "not to speak in public spaces, in the subways, even if you wear the mask".

"It's small things, but finally there are no small measures" in the face of Covid-19, concludes the specialist.