RCT's (Randomized, Controlled Trials) are the absolute best-quality evidence the scientists have on the subject. And they tell masks do not work:
WHO meta-analysis on RCT's about masks (2019):
https://www.who.int/influenza/publications/public_health_measures/publication/en/
"OVERALL RESULT OF EVIDENCE ON FACE MASKS
- Ten RCTs were included in the meta-analysis, and there was no evidence that face masks are effective in reducing transmission of laboratory-confirmed influenza."
"Quality of evidence
- There is a moderate overall quality of evidence that face masks do not have a substantial effect on transmission of influenza."
The largest meta-analysis on the subject, with over 3000 studies gone through / analyzed:
"Physical interventions to interrupt or reduce the spread of respiratory viruses"
https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD006207.pub5/epdf/standard
20 November 2020
"What are the results of the review?
- Medical or surgical masks
Seven studies took place in the community, and two studies in healthcare workers. Compared with wearing no mask, [b]wearing a mask may make little to no difference[/b] in how many people caught a flu-like illness (9 studies; 3507 people); and probably makes no difference in how many people have flu confirmed by a laboratory test (6 studies; 3005 people). Unwanted effects were rarely reported, but included discomfort."
- "Medical/surgical masks compared to no masks
We included nine trials (of which eight were cluster-RCTs) comparing medical/surgical masks versus no masks to prevent the spread of viral respiratory illness (two trials with healthcare workers and seven in the community). There is low certainty evidence from nine trials (3507 participants) that wearing a mask may make little or no difference to the outcome of influenza like illness (ILI) compared to not wearing a mask (risk ratio (RR) 0.99, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.82 to 1.18."
A widely reported Finnish meta-analysis on masks, which at first has results that favor mask-use, but after correcting only one of the mistakes in the study, has RR>1 for masks (=masks have no effect / increase infections):
(The largest data error is regarding the Larson 2010 numbers in the study, they took "number of people with no symptoms" in stead of "number of people with symptoms")
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.07.31.20166116v2.full.pdf
December 2, 2020
"So why do the surgeons use them?!?"
The most recent meta-analysis on surgeon / operating theatre mask use: masks increase infections:
"Are facemasks a priority for all staff in theatre to prevent surgical site infections during shortages of supply? A systematic review and meta-analysis"
Marson 07.10.2020
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7539019/
"The pooled effect of not wearing facemasks was a risk ratio for infection of 0.77 (0.62–0.97) in favour of not wearing masks."
(All the previous meta-analyses on operating theatre mask use have same results, I can post you 6 another ones if you want to)
Listen to the scientists, stop wearing the masks
They are of no benefit to your health, they only harm the environment
And they have absolutely no effect on anything.
Except for the environment. They already banned straws due to pollution, face masks create multiple times more waste.