CLEVELAND — At the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, health officials and organizations like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization did not recommend wearing a face mask in public. But recently, the advice has shifted, with doctors and health officials recommending masks, and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine taking it a step further by issuing a mask mandate for all Ohioans beginning at 6 p.m. Thursday. The governor's announcement came one day after the president called masks "patriotic."

"Our preliminary data indicate that the rate of increase in new cases in those counties has slowed. We believe this is, at least in part, the result of people wearing masks, so we are cautiously optimistic that things are heading in the right direction," DeWine said on Wednesday.

We asked Dr. Tara Smith, an epidemiologist and infectious disease expert at Kent State University about the most dangerous and damaging misinformation that's currently being spread.

"I think at this stage of the pandemic, it's really the idea that masks are not helping or in some cases are even dangerous or counterproductive," Smith said.

With confusion and misinformation surrounding face masks spreading like wild on social media, Raed Dweik, a doctor at the Cleveland Clinic, debunked the myths that seem to pop up in the comments section of any article that mentions a face mask.

“There's a growing body of evidence now that cloth masks do help protect the community from the spread of the coronavirus,” he said.

The Centers for Disease Control recommends wearing a face cloth covering in public to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The mask acts as a physical barrier between you and other people. It’s meant to trap large respiratory droplets from getting into the air and infecting those near you.

"As far as stopping the spread of the virus, we've seen some work coming out, both modeling and some laboratory studies, that have suggested that masks, while not perfect, if you have a large percentage of the population who is wearing them regularly, they can reduce the spread of the virus and hopefully get us back to some semblance of normality," Smith said.

Dweik said it’s a simple concept, but some people are not convinced. He separates fact from myth.

Myth: Only wear a mask if you have symptoms.
Fact: You still should wear a mask as not everyone who is infected gets sick, so people may spread the virus before they have symptoms, Dweik said.

"So in the beginning, the message was - it wasn't 'don't wear a mask.' It was wear them if you are sick," Smith said. "Because...how masks work best is for what we call source control. So when you are coughing and sneezing and just breathing, you expel viral particles from your mouth and nose. So if you are sick and you know you have maybe a healthy person caring for you, we recommended from the beginning that you wear masks to keep that virus away from that healthy person."

That guidance was based on other infectious diseases, like SARS and MERS, Smith said.

"And now we're recommending them universally because now we know that you can spread this for people who are pre-symptomatic," Smith said. "Those who will become ill, you can spread it about three to four days before you start to show symptoms. And those who are completely asymptomatic, who are infected, but they never show symptoms, are still kind of a black box and a little bit more of a mystery. So basically, anyone could be walking around spreading this virus without knowing it. And you could infect others in the community. So that's why that recommendation has changed — once we saw that you could spread this even without symptoms."

Myth: Wearing a mask can make you sick.
Fact: There aren’t many reasons for not wearing a mask, short of having a rare allergy to the material, Dr. Dweik said.

If a mask is bothering you, he recommends moving to a space away from others and removing it for a short time.

Myth: My mask just needs to cover my mouth.
Fact: The Clinic said a mask should cover your mouth and your nose. It should be snug but comfortable against the sides of your face, and you should be able to breathe without restriction. Choose one that secures with ties or ear loops. Don’t wear your mask around your neck or chin, or over your head — that doesn’t protect anyone.

Myth: By wearing a mask, you don’t have to social distance.
Fact: Guess again. Dweik adds, “Masking by itself is not enough. It’s really part of what we call a ‘package deal’ to try to minimize the spread of the virus. Masking is one, the second is social distancing - keeping six feet apart or more if you can, and of course, washing and sanitizing the hands.”

News 5 combed through comments on our poll that asked whether viewers supported the mask mandate.

Myth: Masks are not one-way.

Fact: The CDC said a cloth mask "is a simple barrier to help prevent respiratory droplets from traveling into the air and onto other people when the person wearing the cloth face-covering coughs, sneezes, talks, or raises their voice. This is called source control."

An example a News 5 viewer used as a way to explain the purpose of wearing a mask.

Myth: The virus that causes COVID-19 is much smaller than the holes between threads in a mask, so won't it still go through a mask?

Fact: "Viruses are dependent on propulsion through air and things like that," Smith said during a Facebook Live session with News 5 viewers. What we're doing with masking is, one, providing a barrier to help prevent the droplets that carry those viruses, and help prevent them from leaving the mask. So when you are wearing a mask, and the best ones are generally triple-layer with a tight weave, so you have overlapping layers of fabric, to try to keep all of your respiratory droplets in rather than leaving the mask, what you are doing is keeping those droplets in. Those droplets hold the virus. So as long as you can keep those droplets in the mask, very little of that virus is going to get out. And then if two people are masked, you have that double protection. So not only is the virus going to stay in your mask, in those droplets, but the other person, it's going to be more difficult for any potential, free-floating, aerosolized virus to get in and expose them to the virus."

Myth: The mask mandate requires you to wear a mask in your own home, while exercising, everywhere outdoors, even if you have a medical condition, in church, and somehow while eating or drinking.

Fact: Here is the current wording of Governor Mike DeWine’s statewide mask mandate, and the exceptions to it, which takes effect Thursday at 6 p.m.:

All individuals in Ohio must wear facial coverings in public at all times when:

• At an indoor location that is not a residence
• Outdoors, but unable to maintain six-foot social distance from people who are not household members
• Waiting for, riding, driving, or operating public transportation, such as a taxi, a car service, or a private car used for ride-sharing.

The order only requires those 10 years old or older to wear a mask. Additional exclusions include:

• Those with a medical condition or a disability or those communicating with someone with a disability;
• Those who are actively exercising or playing sports;
• Those who are officiants at religious services;
• Those who are actively involved in public safety; or
• Those who are actively eating or drinking.

UPDATE: The full director's order for facial coverings in the state of Ohio has been posted here.

For further guidance, you can read the full health order issued by the Ohio Department of Health and signed by the ODH Interim Director Lance Himes.

The science: What evidence is out that proves wearing a mask is effective in preventing?

On July 14, in an editorial published in the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA), the CDC reviewed the latest research and stood by the increasing evidence that cloth face coverings help prevent people who have COVID-19 from spreading the virus to others.

“We are not defenseless against COVID-19,” said CDC Director Dr. Robert R. Redfield in response to the findings. “Cloth face coverings are one of the most powerful weapons we have to slow and stop the spread of the virus – particularly when used universally within a community setting. All Americans have a responsibility to protect themselves, their families, and their communities.”

The review included two case studies, one that showed a mask prevented the spread of infection from two hairstylists to their customers in Missouri and the other one showing adherence to universal masking policies reduced SARS-CoV-2 transmission within a Boston hospital system.

Study 1—The investigation focused on two hairstylists — infected with and having symptoms of COVID-19 — whose salon policy followed a local ordinance requiring cloth face coverings for all employees and patrons. The investigators found that none of the stylists’ 139 clients or secondary contacts became ill, and all 67 clients who volunteered to be tested showed no sign of infection, the CDC said.

Study 2— A study from the CDC foundthat Navy service members on the USS Theodore Roosevelt, which experienced a large COVID-19 outbreak, were less likely to get infected if they reported using a mask. "The findings reinforce the importance of nonpharmaceutical interventions such as wearing a face covering, avoiding common areas, and observing social distancing to lower risk for infection in similar congregate living settings," the researchers concluded.

Since the pandemic, the CDC along with researchers have released over a dozen studies showing the benefits of wearing a mask. Read them here.

The CDC also recommends that wearing a face mask is not possible in every situation. There are exceptions.

For example,

• People who are deaf or hard of hearing—or those who care for or interact with a person who is hearing impaired—may be unable to wear cloth face coverings if they rely on lipreading to communicate. In this situation, consider using a clear face covering. If a clear face covering isn’t available, consider whether you can use written communication, use closed captioning, or decrease background noise to make communication possible while wearing a cloth face covering that blocks your lips.
• Some people, such as people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, mental health conditions or other sensory sensitivities, may have challenges wearing a cloth face covering. They should consult with their healthcare provider for advice about wearing cloth face coverings.
• Younger children (e.g., preschool or early elementary aged) may be unable to wear a cloth face covering properly, particularly for an extended period of time. Wearing of cloth face coverings may be prioritized at times when it is difficult to maintain a distance of 6 feet from others (e.g., during carpool drop off or pick up, or when standing in line at school). Ensuring proper cloth face covering size and fit and providing children with frequent reminders and education on the importance and proper wear of cloth face coverings may help address these issues.
• People should not wear cloth face coverings while engaged in activities that may cause the cloth face covering to become wet, like when swimming at the beach or pool. A wet cloth face covering may make it difficult to breathe. For activities like swimming, it is particularly important to maintain physical distance from others when in the water.
• People who are engaged in high intensity activities, like running, may not be able to wear a cloth face covering if it causes difficulty breathing. If unable to wear a cloth face covering, consider conducting the activity in a location with greater ventilation and air exchange (for instance, outdoors versus indoors) and where it is possible to maintain physical distance from others.

RELATED: US could get COVID-19 under control in 1 to 2 months if everyone wears masks, CDC director says

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Click here for a page with resources including a COVID-19 overview from the CDC, details on cases in Ohio, a timeline of Governor Mike DeWine's orders since the outbreak, coronavirus' impact on Northeast Ohio, and link to more information from the Ohio Department of Health, the Cuyahoga County Board of Health, the CDC and the WHO.

See data visualizations showing the impact of coronavirus in Ohio, including county-by-county maps, charts showing the spread of the disease, and more.

The CDC and the Ohio Department of Health are now recommending the use of cloth face coverings in public to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Read more about the CDC's recommendation here. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to make a face maskfrom common household materials, without having to know how to sew.

View a global coronavirus tracker with data from Johns Hopkins University.