Stop Glasses From Fogging Up With a Band-Aid on Your Mask

We’ve covered a bunch of anti-fog hacks here ever since masks became commonplace, but a doctor recently tweeted an even simpler one than folding the top of the mask, using a piece of tissue, or coating your lenses with anti-fog spray. It’s a band-aid.

If you’re having a hard time with glasses fogging or keeping your mask up over your nose, a simple bandaid does wonders. Learned it in the OR.

Feel free to share, it may save lives! pic.twitter.com/RBG8JGUzFS

— Daniel M. Heiferman, MD (@DanHeifermanMD) November 12, 2020

While you could also use a piece of tape (such as the tape found in first-aid kits), Dr. Heiferman notes that the cotton pad in the bandage prevents some of the irritation that he would notice after using tape for several days in a row. And in addition to preventing glasses from fogging, the band-aid can also keep your mask from sliding down.

I don’t wear glasses, but our social editor Tim Mulkerin tested this hack, putting a band-aid on a cloth mask. “It works very well,” he reported. The band-aid closes the gaps that would normally appear where your mask meets the sides of your nose.

There was a small flaw in the plan, though: Tim found that, since his glasses were resting on the band-aid, they were a bit more likely to slip down his nose. If you try this hack, be sure to consider the type of adhesive bandage you use. Some are smooth and plasticky; others, like the one in the doctor’s tweet, have more texture to them. You might also be able to adjust the positioning of where the mask, and thus the band-aid, fits on your nose.