Vaccines are humanity’s hope to eradicate the spread of COVID-19 throughout the world, and although there are already vaccines in circulation, at the moment a very low percentage of the population has been vaccinated, with which we still have several months until practically the whole world is immunized.

But certain people have already received the vaccine and doubt knowing if they have to continue wearing a mask and sanitise hands in public. The answer is clear and concise: yes, you will still have to wear a mask and use hand sanitisers. The answer is clear and concise: yes, you will still have to wear a mask. Of course, the different governments will relax the measures over time and according to the behavior of the virus and its mutations.

The point is that vaccinated people can still transmit the virus, and until 100% of the population, or at least a very high percentage, is not already vaccinated, the need and obligation of masks will be a fact anywhere in the world.

To understand the situation, something that TheGuardian explains even with animated graphics, once a person is injected with the vaccine, they begin to develop antibodies that will systematically fight against the virus. These antibodies will circulate to other parts of the body and protect us from the disease.

It should be noted that the coronavirus normally enters the body through our nasal cavities, and although we continue to have antibodies in the nose, it is likely that their number is lower and the virus may remain in our nasal cavities for a time until it is eliminated. That is why, even if you are vaccinated and are immune to the virus, it is likely that you have traces of the coronavirus in your nostrils, and therefore could potentially infect other people who have not been vaccinated .

On the other hand, it must be taken into account that due to the urgency of the pandemic there are still many studies in progress and it is unknown for how long current vaccines can protect us against the virus since it does not mean that once we are vaccinated, we can never become infected again.

The scientific community is also looking closely at the evolutionary changes in the virus with all these variants, which could make vaccines less effective, and which could force certain people who have been vaccinated previously, to have to be vaccinated again a few months later.

There will be short-term exceptions, such as you can meet non-partners in your home without wearing a mask if they are all vaccinated, but when it comes to public spaces, it will continue to be mandatory, at least throughout 2021.

So until the scientific community does not have many more solid studies, presumably at the end of the year, we will not know how long we must wear a mask on a mandatory basis despite being already vaccinated.