If you have small children in your house, hopefully you carefully read and heed all warning labels. Any product labeled “Keep out of reach of children. If swallowed, get medical help or contact a Poison Control Center right away.” should be locked away and used with extreme caution. One dangerous product that often gets overlooked is the hand sanitizer.
Hand sanitizers are becoming increasingly popular in schools, daycare centers, doctors’ offices, and hospitals. When hand washing is not convenient, hand sanitizers have proven valuable in reducing the spread of contagious illnesses. Hand washing is still the best way to remove dirt and decrease the spread of germs. Unfortunately, hand sanitizers are often left out in easy reach as if they were innocent lotions instead of the powerful chemicals that they are.
The Purell and Germ-X brands of hand sanitizers each contain 62% ethyl alcohol. Hand sanitizer is equivalent to 124 proof alcohol. To give a reference point, light beer is generally 6 proof (3% alcohol) and white wine is typically 24 proof (12% alcohol). It has more alcohol than vodka (80 proof)!
If a toddler ingests one or two ounces, or just three squirts of the hand sanitizer, IT COULD BE FATAL. Swallowing a smaller amount can cause intoxication or alcohol poisoning. Even a small amount licked from a child’s hand can cause dizziness, disorientation, headache, stomachache, slurred speech, etc.
While the makers of Purell claim that their product is not toxic or unsafe when used as directed, young children cannot read those directions. The Purell FAQ states:
Is Purell safe for children?
Purell is safe for children when used according to the directions. Children should be supervised when using Purell. All Purell Instant Hand Sanitizers contain an additive that tastes bitter and makes Purell undesirable to drink. As with all drug products, consult your physician before using on babies or young children.
Snopes.com, an excellent online resource to verify e-mail forwards and urban myths, talks about the dangers of hand sanitizers. They also do an excellent job explaining why children ingest non-food items.
We do not normally use hand sanitizer gels or wipes. At home, we wash the kids’ hands with antibacterial hand soap and plenty of warm water. When we go out, we use regular baby wipes to clean all surfaces that come in contact with the kids’ skin (high chairs, shopping cart handles, etc.). We also try to wash their hands in the washroom before and after eating.
We do keep small bottles of Purell in both our car and our diaper bag. We only use it in emergencies, such as after touching animals or changing diapers when there is no sink nearby. The kids make a game out of rubbing and shaking their hands until the gel is completely dry. We always remind our kids to keep their hands out of their mouths if we see them licking their hands or sucking their fingers, but we are especially vigilant after they use any type of hand sanitizer.
Here are some tips to help keep your children safe from hand sanitizers:
- Keep hand sanitizers out of reach of children (The packages are not childproof!)
- Closely supervise children during use
- Rub hands together until completely dry
- Explain that the hand sanitizer is dangerous if used improperly
- Remind children not to put their fingers or hands in their mouth, nose, or eyes after immediate use
23 responses so far ↓
1 Beth // May 26, 2007 at 8:13 am
Thanks for bring this to my attention. I never knew the real dangers. I always treated them as lotions. They’ll be locked away in my house.
I really enjoy this blog and I love your articles Elaine!
2 Elaine // May 29, 2007 at 4:56 pm
Thanks for visiting the site, Beth! Don’t forget to subscribe to our RSS feed for instant updates to our blog.
3 Allison Roberts // May 30, 2007 at 1:14 pm
I’m the director of sales for Hands2GO, a natural alcohol-free hand sanitizer that is safe for children. It is 99.9% effective at killing germ and because it is alcohol free it is non-irritating to the skin. Hands2GO is also fragrance free. I’d like to send some samples to Marlo and Elaine. Please e-mail me with an address so I can send you an information package and a sample, I think you will find Hands2GO a smarter solution for hand sanitizing.
4 Elaine // May 30, 2007 at 2:24 pm
We’re looking forward to trying Hands2GO. Thanks Allison.
5 Gail Brenner // Nov 12, 2007 at 11:56 am
As I go through the information on MRSA as well as the issues surrounding it I can across you web site. I teach Family and Consumer science along with Child Development and Nutrition. This site looks like I can get good information as well as a feed back from others. Thank you, Gail
6 Elaine // Nov 17, 2007 at 12:53 am
Thanks, Gail. I’m glad you like our site.
7 Angel // Feb 5, 2008 at 4:57 pm
I am glad that I found this site, Although I allready knew this infromation, there are many that do not!
I would just like to say mom to other mom’s, Pay attention to the check-out’s specially at say walmart super center’s. they are full of these product’s and they are all within child’s reach! I am only aprox 5′2″ and they all come to my waste, I only noticed this after my child 19 month’s old, had an empty bottle of hand sanatizer, it was only 5 ml. but it was empty and he shook his head yes that he had drank it!, What was a shocker is that not one employee that we spoke with knew what to do in this instant! they did not even know of anything to induce vomiting! know I know that you do not induce vomiting untill contacting poision controll first! It may cause even more damage! Luckly for me my son must have grabbed an allready empty bottle, and he had not ingested it! but the sacre knowing that it is all alchol and what damage it could do was enough! I tryed not to panic, but the emotion’s and stress took it’s toll on me! It tooke me 3 day’s to recover from that scare!
Maybe if we all notice small thing’s like this, we can bring it to the attention of other’s and maybe get that stuff moved out of the check-out’s!!!! It is almost impossible to keep that close eye on the child while you are at the other end of the shopping cart unloading your thing’s onto the belt!
Please keep this in mind the next shopping trip you make.
Frightened and concerned mommy of 3!
8 Elaine // Feb 5, 2008 at 6:57 pm
Thanks, Angel! It’s always good to be reminded of those things. I guess I should consider myself lucky that my kids always go for the candy instead of the batteries, lighters, hand sanitizer, etc.
Regarding possible poisoning, if you don’t have the poison control number handy, call 911 right away!
9 Angel // Feb 5, 2008 at 8:34 pm
Thank’s much! I really think Walmart need’s to take care of this matter, I would rather have them go for the candy or even chap stick than the rest of it!
10 Safe Hand Sanitizers and Anti-Bacterials | Natural Family Living Blog // Mar 19, 2008 at 12:29 pm
[...] all seem to be taking the lazy path and utilizing waterless hand sanitizers instead. Also, these hand santizers have the equivalent of 124 proof alcohol. That is more alcohol than vodka and 3 ingested squirts could be enough to cause alcohol poisoning. [...]
11 For My CH.I.L.D - Change in Little Doses » Blog Archive » Dirty Hands Getting Clean…Alcohol-Free! // Mar 24, 2008 at 2:13 pm
[...] of you were asking why this is safer than products such as Purell. Well, hand sanitizers have the equivalent of 124 proof alcohol. That is more alcohol than vodka and 3 ingested squirts could be enough to cause alcohol poisoning. [...]
12 Sacha // May 13, 2008 at 1:19 am
My kids go to a public school in WA. state. At the beginning of the year , as well as through out, the parents are required(by the teachers) to buy hand sanitizer. The kids use it before going to lunch. Hmmm. If injesting the sanitizer could cause sick and disorientating feeling, don’t you think it should be stopped.I heard about the possibilty of this last year, that is could possibly cause drunkiness.My kids just dont use it, but they are the only kids not using it, before lunch!!! It’s really strange that the regular, soap and water is only used after the bathroom, but how long would it take to train kids to wash their hands with soap at school? We do it at home. So my kids are the only ones really allowed to wash their hands at “line up for lunch time…here’s your side of alcohol. YUCK. I hope that someone has a good idea of how to raise the awarness and the standard of all this. Thanks
13 Elaine // May 13, 2008 at 5:57 pm
Sacha, I was really surprised to read that children are not being allowed to wash with soap and water at school!
At least you are teaching your own children good hygiene. Hopefully the other parents will follow your lead.
Thanks for stopping by, Sacha!
14 rebecca // Jun 12, 2008 at 3:26 am
Our kids school does not have enough sinks by the cafeteria for a whole lunch period so they were having parents donate baby wipes until I complained. Now they supply sanitizers but even use of those is not enforced or even reminded. At a class picnic by the school and on a field trip they did nothing. In this school there have been a MRSA bone infection, mono, strep,
viruses, colds, eye infections, whooping cough, and who knows what else. The PTO just looks at me the times I have discussed this and the school board rationalizes that they didn’t wash their hands in school. They didn’t have superbugs either I say.
My kids have a doctor’s note to use the sinks. That is the best they will offer.
I am running out of ideas how to resolve this.
15 Sacha // Jun 12, 2008 at 12:03 pm
If the leadership at your school doesn’t take your concerns seriously, then you have to be the one contacting the district. If the children are not washing their hands ever at school, then of course there will be more instances of colds, viruses and bacterial infections. Just touching the staph virus to your skin, can cause an infection. We are our childrens best doctors and advocates. Think how far our knowledge has come in 100 years….now lets keep our kids safe and demand time to wash hands.
16 Miranda // Feb 13, 2009 at 9:29 pm
GIVE ME A BREAK! Your child will not become disoriented licking their hand after putting on sanitzer. Have you ever tried it? They would not get past licking the bottle stage! That stuff is beyond disgusting. Germ X adds a bittering agent so that children will NOT eat it. If you child does decide to stick their tongue down the bottle it is NOT going to kill them. It MAY lower their blood sugar…so give them a sugary drink and watch them. Talk about over reaction. The best thing would be to KEEP IT OUT OF REACH. I am an ER nurse, a woman brought her 3 year old in after she thought he drank a 2.5 oz. bottle of the blue raspberry scented germ x…NOTHING was wrong with him. Don’t over react. Just watch your child for signs of “drunkeness” . 99.9 percent of the time your child will not injest enough to become sick at all…put an extremely small amount on your finger and lick it off…now you tell me if your CHILD is going to drink that…ABSOLUTELY NOT!!
17 rebecca // Feb 15, 2009 at 10:26 am
We have a PA department of education policy for handwashing and hygiene (search action plan for handwashing and hygiene) that says that students must use sinks with sanitzers ONLYas an adjunct.
The FDA, CDC, and county health department all recommend the same thing.
The stuff is not approved for food workers because it is not on some approved list related to safety around food but more importantly because sanitizers are NOT EFFECTIVE against many pathogens particularly many types of viruses.
Soap and water wash dirt and germs down the drain. These products kill some common germs in lab dishes. That is how they get away with their claims. Search “american businesses hype sanitizers”
Which would you rather do wash them down the drain or give them an alcohol bath?
But we want that quick fix. We want to throw that sanitizer in our purse and carry it around to ward off germs.
We are an easy sell and the schools are even easier.
18 MelindaFrances // Mar 12, 2009 at 7:22 pm
Has any one heard of the dangers on anitbac.hand soap? I’ve heard that anti.bac properties are mutating viruses,and making them resistant to alot of things. It was said that hand sant. was actually better because it just killed the germs out right. Our house just uses plain old soap.
19 Rebecca // Mar 13, 2009 at 7:38 am
I think that this is controversial but it makes a lot of sense because we do know that viruses mutate to survive and become hardier. Sanitizers are good as an adjunct or in a pinch but they are just alcohol. If alcohol killed everything they would not have to sterilize surgical instruments. It takes 30 minutes in pure alcohol to kill pinworm larva. The norovirus and other enveloped viruses are resistant to alcohol.
The contact time and the inability to penetrate dirt on the skin are other issues.
Soap and water whatever kind just washes the germs and viruses down the drain. That is the best option.
20 MaMa // Mar 23, 2009 at 2:00 pm
Hi everyone,
my cousin brought this to my attention just last night, that hand sanitizer is no good for kids she saw a special report on 20/20 recently. We have been using it religiously since the birth of our son in september. we have our daughter who is 3 use it when we can’t help her in the bathroom because she can’t reach the faucets yet. So can u clearify does this mean that it’s only harmful if ingested IMMEDIATELY after use? does that mean if my daughters hands are dried and she puts her fingers in her mouth she is okay?
21 Elaine // Mar 23, 2009 at 11:31 pm
MaMa, it’s my understanding that once the hand sanitizer dries, all the alcohol has evaporated. This would mean your daughter couldn’t get intoxicated from it once it’s dried, but I don’t know what happens if she ingests the remaining residue, if any.
As for all the recent comments about anti-bacterial soap, I haven’t done enough research to post an opinon about that yet. I do know that a good hand washing with ANY kind of soap is the best way to prevent the spread of germs. Even better than the best hand sanitizer.
Anti-bacterial soap does seem to be everywhere these days. People worried about mutating viruses and bacteria may have to start carrying their own soap to public places now.
22 MaMa // Mar 25, 2009 at 3:46 pm
oh okay Elaine thanks!…by the way i went out and found a non alcoholic sanitizer called X3 clean…Elaine have u heard of this one and is it still killing the germs as good as the alcoholic ones? it doesn’t have a percentage on the bottle for killing germs
23 How to: Refill Foaming Hand Soap Pumps at MarloElaine // Apr 19, 2009 at 9:29 pm
[...] washing is the best way to prevent the transmission of germs, even better than all the hand sanitizers on the market. Encouraging children to wash their hands before eating and after using the [...]
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