Popularity of Hand Sanitizer!

Hand sanitizer is the quickest method of de-germing your hands. It has become socially popular to use hand sanitizer often to prevent the spread of germs. There are many brands, scents, and trendy formulas on the market. The main element to consider when purchasing is to make sure it has at least 60% ethyl alcohol. This formula has been proven to be most effective in as fast as 15 seconds. Most commercial hand sanitizers have standardized to have approximately 62% ethyl alcohol.

The market has increased in the last 5 years in variety and production of hand sanitizer products. There are formulas packaged in cute containers and appear to be accessory-like. Many formulas have lotion infused to provide moisturizing benefits. Hand sanitizer has become trendy and collectible for young adolescent girls as if it were lip gloss. The Bath and Body Works store in the American malls have capitalized on this trend by offering pleasant scents and a variety of colors to choose from.

According to the CDC, alcohol concentration between 60-95% in hand sanitizer is most effective in inactivating and reducing the amount of germs. It is important to understand that hand sanitizer does not eliminate all types of germs. Soap and water is far more effective on harmful germs that cause gastrointestinal illness such as Clostridium difficile, Cryptosporidium and Norovirus.

http://www.cdc.gov/handwashing/show-me-the-science-hand-sanitizer.html#alcohol

Hand Hygiene is the best defense against germs!

It’s hard to imagine that a keyboard is far more germ infested than a public toilet. The door handles and faucet handles are just as bad. Germs can easily become eliminated simply by effective hand hygiene. There are several types of alcohol based hand sanitizer that more and more people use regularly. Dispensers of this germ eliminating solution can be found in many public areas such as malls, airports, restaurants, etc. Unfortunately, this alcohol hand rub doesn’t kill all harmful bacteria and good old fashioned soap and water is necessary for some situations. The habit of cleaning your hands has been proven in preventing the spread of infection and illness. The most important times to clean your hands are before eating, after using the restroom, after touching public surfaces, after touching body fluids (saliva, snot, sweat), and of course when visibly soiled. It is important to wash your hands with soap and water before eating because there are spores that live on surfaces for several months that are not affected by alcohol based hand sanitizer. Clostridium difficile is a spore that can be ingested from dirty hands and cause an infectious bloody diarrhea. Virus and other bacteria can be spread and transmitted to others from shaking hands with another person or touching a surface that will expose someone else to the germ you were carrying. Germs are invisible so it takes a conscious effort for us to remember to clean our hands often.