Hand sanitizer
A convenient hand hygiene alternative when soap and water are unavailable.
Last updated
NeoBatfreak · CC BY-SA 4.0
Hand sanitizer is a liquid, gel, or foam that kills microorganisms on the hands, and it can also be a cream, spray, or wipe.[1] It is a convenient alternative when soap and water are unavailable, though hand washing is generally preferred.[1]
Quick Facts
- Recommended minimum alcohol concentratio
- 60%
Facts from the source article.
Key facts and history
Alcohol-based hand sanitizers were first introduced in 1966 in medical settings.[2] The World Health Organization includes alcohol-based hand sanitizers on its List of Essential Medicines.[3] The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends alcohol-based hand sanitizers with at least 60% alcohol when soap and water are not available.[4] This guide received renewed interest in 2020 due to shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic.[5]
By the 1980s, alcohol-based hand sanitizers saw widespread adoption across Europe.[3] The early 1990s marked a period when hand sanitizer gained broader popularity.[2] In healthcare environments, alcohol-based hand sanitizers are frequently chosen over soap-and-water hand washing because they demonstrate superior bacteria reduction and cause less skin irritation.[4] A manufacturing guide for hand sanitizer was released by the World Health Organization in 2010.[5]
What the cited sources add
A BBC News report from 2009 stated that a Dorset prison removed hand gel pumps after an inmate reportedly got drunk on them.[6] The same report noted that Royal Bournemouth Hospital was one of many hospitals removing alcohol-based hand gel from reception areas to stop visitors drinking it.[6] A CNN report from June 2020 stated that three people died and one was permanently blind from methanol poisoning after drinking hand sanitizer in New Mexico.[7] The CNN report said all seven people involved drank hand sanitizer containing methanol.[7]
The CNN report also noted that before the pandemic, hand sanitizer was banned in most prisons based on fears that inmates would drink it or use it to start fires.[7]
References
- Wikipedia, "Hand sanitizer" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "hand sanitizer - definition of hand sanitizer in English", Oxford Dictionaries; "Guideline for Hand Hygiene in Health-Care Settings. Recommendations of the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee and the HICPAC/SHEA/APIC/IDSA Hand Hygiene Task Force. Society for Healthcare Epidemio; "Hand Sanitizers: A Review on Formulation Aspects, Adverse Effects, and Regulations", International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, May 2020, p. 3326; "Show Me the Science – When & How to Use Hand Sanitizer in Community en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Hand sanitizer" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Origin of ordinary things: Hand sanitizer", The New Times, 17 March 2020 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Hand sanitizer" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Disinfection, sterilization, and preservation", Soil Science, 1977-12-01, p. 378; "Infection Control and Management of Hazardous Materials for the Dental Team", Elsevier Health Sciences, 2016, p. 269; "World Health Organization model list of essential medicines: 21st list 2019", World Health Organization, 2019; "World Health Organization model list of essential medicines: 22nd list (2021)", World Health Organization, 2021 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Hand sanitizer" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Clean Hands Save Lives!", Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 11 December 2013; "Hand Hygiene: An Update", Infectious Disease Clinics of North America, September 2016, p. 591–607; "Situations Leading to Reduced Effectiveness of Current Hand Hygiene against Infectious Mucus from Influenza Virus-Infected Patients", mSphere, September 2019; "The selection and use of essential medicines. Twentieth report of the WHO Expert Committee 2015 (including 19th WHO Model List of Essential Medicines and 5th WHO Model List of Essential Medicin en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Hand sanitizer" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Guide to Local Production: WHO-recommended Handrub Formulations", WHO, April 2010; "White House Works With Distillers to Increase Hand Sanitizer Production", Forbes, 18 March 2020; "Distilleries are making hand sanitizer with their in-house alcohol and giving it out for free to combat coronavirus", CNN, 16 March 2020; "Distilleries Race to Make Hand Sanitizer Amid Coronavirus Pandemic", The New York Times, 19 March 2020; "Production of Hand Sanitizer by Distilled Spirits Permittees", The TTB Newsletter (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- "Prisoner 'drunk on swine flu gel'", BBC News online, 24 September 2009. facts only, no text reused. news.bbc.co.uk
- "Three people died and one is permanently blind after drinking hand sanitizer in New Mexico", CNN, 27 June 2020. facts only, no text reused. cnn.com
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Hand sanitizer (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
More in Personal Care And Hygiene
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Hand sanitizer (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced