The World Health Organization (WHO) recently classified the new coronavirus as apandemic.
But small daily habitslike hand hygienecan reduce your personal risk of infection and transmission too.
Which prompts the question…how well does hand sanitizer really work against coronavirus?
Getty / imagestock / PhotoMelon / Niteenrk; Designed by Morgan Johnson
I will say, Im a big hand-sanitizer person.
Its been a staple of mine for many years.
(Some people are not only buying many bottles of hand sanitizer but evenreselling the stufffor high prices online.
Unfortunately, these numbers are only expected to rise.
The general emphasis on goodhand hygieneclearly isnt going away anytime soon.
Hand sanitizer seems to be one effective tool against the new coronavirus.
(Heresthe right way to wash your handsto protect against diseases like the new coronavirus.)
When you cant wash your hands, theCDCsuggests using a hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.
Coronaviruses areenveloped viruses, meaning they basically have an outer wrapping covering the actual virus.
Alcohol-based hand sanitizer [disrupts] the virus envelope, which is a membrane covering the virus particle.
As far as when exactly to use hand sanitizer for this purpose?
Definitely after interacting with or touching anyone who has been sneezing or coughing.
You should also venture to use hand sanitizer before touching your face or eating if you cantwash your handsinstead.
Rasmussen also suggests using hand sanitizer after youve touched communal surfaces like doorknobs and countertops.
Handwashing is more effective for overall hand hygiene, though.
Oftentimes, choosing between handwashing and hand sanitizer comes down to what works better depending on the circumstances.
(It is more convenient, after all.)
Heres how to double-check your hand sanitizer is as effective as possible.
That 60% alcohol rule isnt arbitrary!
Products with less than 60% alcohol arent guaranteed to be as effective at sanitizing.
Not following those steps can make your hand sanitizer less effective at fighting thenew coronavirusand other illnesses.
