Despite recent research that suggests using hand sanitizers is more effective at keeping children from falling ill, the CDC and medical experts emphasize the importance of using water and soap when cleaning hands.
Hand washing(1) is definitely one of the most powerful ways of preventing the spread of disease. Be sure to clean your hands before preparing food or eating, before, during, and after preparing food, after flushing the toilet and after blowing your nose, sneezing or coughing.
Either method is better than not cleaning at all, but water and soap are preferred over alcohol-based hand sanitizers.
Hand Sanitizer vs Soap :Why Soap is Better
The CDC says that using soap and water when cleaning your hands does an adequate job sanitizing than a hand sanitizer or water alone. The surfactants in soap raise soil and microbes from the skin, and most tend to scrub hands more vigorously when using soap, which further eliminates germs.
A surfactant is a compound that, when added to a liquid, reduces its surface tension. The lower surface tension increases the liquid’s wetting and spreading capabilities.
The lather generated by getting the soap wet and the friction caused when scrubbing your hands together, work together to remove both unseen and visible contaminants.
Most of you learned how to wash your hands when you were kids properly. However, as we grow and get busier, our technique tends to get lenient. Follow the CDC’s handwashing guidelines below to hone your techniques.
[Also Read: How to make Home Made Sanitizers]
The procedure for effectively using hand sanitizer probably seems mundane, but some people get the crucial steps wrong.
The most general mistake is to stop before the hands are dry. Or wiping extra sanitizer off using a towel. Also, using too little sanitizer is common.
Although many businesses and homes keep large push bottles of hand sanitizers in stock, it’s prudent to think of hand sanitizer as a handy choice when soap and sink aren’t accessible. Why? Viruses are most effectively removed and killed from hands with water and soap.
The consensus between medical professionals and the CDC alike is that the platinum standard for maintaining hand hygiene is consistent and proper washing of the hands. That’s because water and soap are simply more vigorous.
Hand sanitizer may kill bacteria and certain viruses, but it does not clean your hands as water and soap do. Sanitizer doesn’t remove actual debris and dirt. Soap eliminates germs, binds them, and helps physically remove them, with the water, of your skin, and down the pipe.
It may seem like using a disinfectant soap would be the best of both worlds, and while it’s not a bad idea, the verdict is still out on whether or not it’s better than ordinary soap. Most soaps are more than enough. If you want to go beyond the disinfectant soaps, you may.
According to the CDC, research has proven that there is no additional advantage to using antibacterial soap over regular soap.
Whether you use water and soap or a hand sanitizer, you might as well be using nothing if you’re not adhering to the proper techniques. The type of soap used is less significant than the way the hands are washed.
Experts insist on scrubbing with water and soap for at least 25 seconds — some even insist on a minimum of 45 seconds — so a dash of soap on the hands followed by a nearly immediate rinse isn’t going to cut it.
But ultimately, it comes down to actually implementing it. Whatever you are most likely to do the most often, consistently, and correctly will be the most potent way to put a stop to the spread of infection. Alternatively, why not do both?
Water and soap seem to be best when it comes to preventing the spread of disease-causing germs. But whether using soap or sanitizer, clean hands are better. It is less significant how you clean your hands than that you clean your hands.