>>520542321
>They're also not permanent magnets that catch all the bad stuff like little magical fairies
Right. But they're pretty effective at catching all particulates, including smoke, asbestos, spores, and viruses, which is why they're used to protect against exposure to those things in occupational settings. Chemical fumes require an activated carbon filter or possibly something more specialized, like for acid fumes.

>Go wear a blue mask and weld flux core all day
That gets the pink filters.