Travel
Soap Versus Sanitiser Sprays
Keeping our hands
spotlessly clean is one of
the best things we can do
to ward off infections and
illness, particularly if you’re
going abroad this holiday
season. But what’s better:
hand sanitiser or good oldfashioned soap and water?
Let us spray
Those handy waterless
hand-sanitisers are a first
choice for some. They’re
compact, convenient, and
they don’t require any water.
You just spray and wipe.
Most hand-sanitisers
claim to kill 99.9% of all
germs. That sounds pretty
impressive. And based on
that you’d naturally assume
that your hand sanitiser
is going to kill 99.9% of
the germs on your hands.
But wait a minute. These
products aren’t actually
tested on human hands –
they’re tested on inanimate
surfaces! Now, the human
hand is a very different
prospect, and accordingly,
some researchers claim
that a sanitiser can’t hope
to replicate those successes
on a permeable, pore filled
hand.
40 THE VOICE | Summer 2013
The sanitiser works by
washing away a surface
layer of oil, which is
supposed to prevent
bacteria in the body coming
to the surface and settling
on the hands. Research
in their favour has shown
that they are an effective
way of combatting germs
and microbes – and that
their effects are longerlasting than soap. Some
dermatologists would also
argue that as they contain
built-in emollients they’re
better for your skin. But
some research suggests
that sanitisers can actually
destroy just as much of the
good bacteria as the bad,
leaving us more vulnerable
to the surviving bad
bacteria. And others claim
that continued use only
strengthens the bugs we’re
trying to kill, making us
even more susceptible.
It’s also been shown that
the alcohol content in your
sanitiser is fairly critical –
anything less than 60%
will be ineffective. While
anything more than 95%
probably won’t have a
sufficient water base to help
tackle daily dried on grime
including – look away now
if you’re squeamish – dirt,