The most common statements one usually gets to hear when one listens to the word sanitizer, as it has to lead a much misleading marketing strategy that claims that kills 99.99% of germs and it has potentially dangerous if it is the primary reason you are choosing a particular product.
You people must be in doubt what hand sanitizers one should buy as one gives the promise of 99.99% germs killing hand sanitizer or one which has the proportion of 60% alcohol-based sanitizer?
Effective sanitizers generally contain one of three types of alcohol: ethanol, isopropanol, or n-propanol. They work by dissolving the “outer coats” of bacteria and viruses, destroying them in the process, the video explains.
But do these germ-killers contribute to the problem of resistant “superbugs”? That is indeed a problem with the overuse of antibiotics, as bacteria tend to evolve new defenses against those drugs over time, rendering them less effective.
Be sure to use a sanitizer that is alcohol-based, however. Some contain antibiotics, which would contribute to the resistance problem.
So how about that those 99.99 percent claims?
The American Chemical Society, which is chartered by Congress and publishes peer-reviewed journals, says those results are based on laboratory tests.
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“Real life is messier,” the video’s narrator states. “The effectiveness of hand sanitizer varies on how oily or dirty your hands are, how much alcohol is in there, and which germs you’re actually talking about.”
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention adds that sanitizers should contain at least 60 percent alcohol, and even then, they may be less effective when hands are “visibly dirty or greasy.”
Why is Alcohol playing the crucial part in hand sanitizers?
Alcohol is effective at killing different types of microbes, including both viruses and bacteria and is effective at inactivating the protein of the virus.
If 60% of Alcohol is better, is 100% better?
The pure alcohol would evaporate too quickly to effectively kill bacteria or viruses on your skin, especially during winter when the air is less humid.
Using 100% of alcohol also would dry your skin out very quickly and cause it to become irritated. That might cause you to not sanitize your hands as frequently as needed.
