Keeping both hands clean with soap and water or the use of hand sanitizers is important measure to help prevent the spread of influenza.
What’s hand sanitizer? A hand sanitizer is a gel, foam, and liquid solution which acts as an substitute to hand washing with soap and water. You will find two types of hand sanitizers, alcohol based hand sanitizers and non-alcohol hand sanitizers.
Alcohol based hand sanitizers kill viruses and bacteria due to its alcohol content. The amount of alcohol in these sanitizers varies between 60% and 85%. Most hand sanitizers found in the market contain 62% of alcohol. The most common brands of alcohol based hand sanitizers include Purell sanitizers, Avant, Sterillium, Desderman and Allsept S.
Some hand sanitizers are produced with extra ingredients which include natural products and essential oils. These hand sanitizers don’t just contain alcohol that is necessary to kill germs effectively and safely, but they also contain additional substances that could moisturize and condition your skin. Hospitals use sanitizer dispensers equipped with elbow controlled mechanism to stop any contact with the pump.
Non-alcohol based hand sanitizers use small amount of benzalkonium chloride or triclosan to kill gems.
For the reason that they do not contain alcohol, which is a preservative, the non-alcohol based hand sanitizers may become contaminated.
How to Make Use of Hand Sanitizer
Hand sanitizers could kill most bacteria and viruses immediately while on the skin. How do we use it properly and when should we use it?
The proper way of using hand sanitizer is as shown below:
- Apply enough sanitizer gel to wet your hands
- Rub the solution over all surfaces of your hands and fingers for few seconds until your hands are dry.
- If your hands are visibly dirty, you should wash them with soap and water.
- When to apply the sanitizer gel? It would be a good idea to sanitizer your hands:
- before and after food preparation.
- before eating.
- before and after treating patients.
- before inserting or removing contact lenses.
- after changing a diaper.
- after coughing or sneezing into your hands.
Health benefits of Hand Sanitizers
Despite common perceptions, alcohol-based hand sanitizers dries skin less than hand washing with soap and water.
Hand sanitizers kill viruses such as flu virus, the common cold virus, and HIV and a number of bacteria for instance antibiotic resistant bacteria and TB bacteria. Hand sanitizers also kill fungi too.
Common Risk of Hand Sanitizer
Alcohol is flammable. Alcohol based hand sanitizers can catch fire of it. However, hand sanitizers with high concentration of water or moisturizing agents may not produce this effect. Rubbing your hands until dry could minimize the risk of fire. This is because it only takes few second for the flammable alcohol in hand sanitizers to evaporate into the air. Your hands are dry means that the alcohol is gone.
