Do Face Masks Help With Wildfire Smoke? Yes, But More Is Needed

All products featured on WIRED are independently selected by our editors. However, we may receive compensation from retailers and/or from purchases of products through these links. Learn more.

Wildfire season is fully upon us—and with it, the smoke. The most spectacular threat of a wildfire is of course the possibility it might directly threaten lives and homes, like the wildfires last year that devastated Los Angeles.

But it is the smoke and the stinging haze—and especially the invisible particulate matter borne aloft for hundreds of miles—that is most likely to pose grave health risks to millions across the country, as wildfires rage in Canada and across the American West during summer months. Cardiac deaths spike after wildfires. So do visits to lung doctors. Smoke is bad for you.

The more we know about the health effects of wildfire particulates in the air, the worse the...

Copyright of this story solely belongs to wired.com. To see the full text click HERE