6 Things You Need To Know About Hand Sanitizer

If you are looking to protect yourself, your family, the public or the workplace and your employees then it helps to know all the positives about hand sanitizer and why you should be using it regularly.  Here are 6 things you didn't know about hand sanitizer...

1. Not all hand sanitizers are equal

In order to kill most germs, hand sanitizers should have an alcohol content of at least 60% in fact, you can find sanitizer with an alcohol content of 95%, the higher the alcohol content, the better. Anything below 60% alcohol will struggle to kill the germs that are present. Always check that the hand sanitizer you are buying has a decent alcohol content.

  2. Make sure you use it correctly

There’s a wrong and a right way of using hand sanitizer?  Yep!  As with soap and water, hand sanitizer works best when it is used correctly and it is easy to do this. You need to add a good amount to the palm of your hand and then distribute it all over your hands, paying attention to the fingertips, back of the hands and in between the fingers. You’ll only need to do this for 20 seconds then the hand sanitizer will be dry. If you and your employees and customers use it correctly, then the chances of becoming ill are reduced by 67%.

 3. Hand sanitizer doesn't clean your hands

Many people believe that hand sanitizer cleans hands but that is not the case. What hand sanitizers do exceptionally well is kill germs that sit on the skin.  This is how viruses are passed around. In fact, what makes hand sanitizer so useful is that it is 99.9% effective at killing germs. Along with this, it also has the ability to kill as much as 97% of the bacteria on your hands. Therefore, it makes sense to use hand sanitizer dispenser in and around the workplace wherever possible.

 4. It won’t become bacteria resistant

Antibacterial soap contains an ingredient known as Triclosan. This has been known to create bacteria that become antibiotic-resistant while it can also worsen the situation. However, hand sanitizer that contains a minimum of 60% alcohol won’t cause resistant bacteria. Alcohol is a known disinfectant that is powerful and it denatures the bacteria, this means that it cannot become resistant like antibacterial soap.

 5. It helps to reduce waste

Another benefit that comes from using hand sanitizer is that it can help to reduce waste when compared with soap and water. Many people will leave their tap running while washing their hands, which leads to wasted water. Many will also use paper towels to dry their hands that then has to be disposed of. As hand sanitizer is applied directly to the hands and it dries naturally, it means that there is no waste.

 6. Hand sanitizer and cleaning wipes are not the same

While you might think that antibacterial wipes are suitable for use on your hands, this is not the case. These are made for hard, non-porous surfaces and now skin. Ultimately, it’s really important that you use the right products and hand sanitizer has been specially formulated for safe use on skin and hands. It is also tested to ensure that you don’t experience an adverse reaction.

  

Hand sanitizer is a hugely important tool as part of our attempt to stem the spread of diseases and viruses so it's good to know the facts and what to look for.

 

 

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