{"id":6353,"date":"2019-10-21T09:00:41","date_gmt":"2019-10-21T13:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.singlecare.com\/blog\/?p=6353"},"modified":"2023-11-21T16:01:10","modified_gmt":"2023-11-21T21:01:10","slug":"hand-sanitizer-kill-the-flu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.singlecare.com\/blog\/hand-sanitizer-kill-the-flu\/","title":{"rendered":"Can hand sanitizers or handwashing kill the flu?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic started, you\u2019ll see hand sanitizer just about everywhere: banks, grocery store checkout lines, the post office, and public bathrooms. We\u2019ve been told it\u2019s the second best way to wash hands if good \u2018ol soap and water isn\u2019t available. So is hand sanitizer a formidable foe to the flu virus? Or is old-fashioned soap and water best? Well, according to 2019 research, it\u2019s complicated.<\/span><\/p>\n

Does hand sanitizer kill the flu virus?<\/span><\/h2>\n

When the flu virus is trapped in wet mucus, it can remain infectious for up to four minutes after exposure to hand sanitizer\u2014in other words, much longer than you might have guessed. This is what a <\/span>recent study<\/span><\/a> found when dabbing wet mucus droplets containing the <\/span>influenza A virus<\/span><\/a> onto the fingertips of brave volunteers.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When the flu virus was suspended in a saline solution, the disinfectant killed the virus in 30 seconds. When applied to dried flu germs, hand sanitizer killed the virus in just eight seconds.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The researchers, from <\/span>Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine<\/span><\/a>, reason that thick, goopy mucus acts as a shield around the virus, preventing the hand sanitizer from fully penetrating it. Saline\u2014not goopy or thick\u2014doesn\u2019t limit the sanitizer\u2019s ability to get into the virus and do its work. Ditto for dried mucus. That\u2019s why the time to eradicate the virus varies so widely.<\/span><\/p>\n

Not everyone exposed to the flu virus has the luxury of choosing the way the virus ends up on their hands\u2014in mucus, saline, or dried. So it\u2019s important to know how long it takes for hand sanitizer to work properly. Otherwise, you could risk infecting yourself or spreading the virus to others.<\/span><\/p>\n

RELATED<\/b>: How to prevent the flu<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Does handwashing kill the flu?<\/span><\/h2>\n

According to the study, handwashing\u2014even without soap and even when the infected mucus was wet\u2014was, indeed, very effective in removing the flu virus. It eliminated it in just 30 seconds. The only problem is that most people don\u2019t wash their hands for nearly that long, and in many situations soap and running water simply aren\u2019t available. In those cases, is hand sanitizer useless?<\/span><\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/b>Handwashing 101<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s all about proper hand hygiene<\/span><\/h2>\n

No matter the method you choose\u2014sanitizer or soap and water\u2014the key is how well and how long you cleanse. Not everyone agrees with the new findings, especially because the researchers didn\u2019t study how hand sanitizer works when it\u2019s rubbed into the skin, only when it was dabbed onto fingers.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe fight wasn\u2019t fair,\u201d says Carl Fichtenbaum, MD, a professor of medicine in the department of internal medicine, division of infectious diseases at the <\/span>University of Cincinnati College of Medicine<\/span><\/a>. \u201cHand sanitizers are always used with a rubbing motion\u2014you have to rub it into your hands to get it to evaporate and dissolve. That\u2019s the real experiment that needed to be done. Hand rubbing is the critical part of all this.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Michael Chang, M.D., an infectious disease pediatrician and an assistant professor of pediatrics at <\/span>McGovern Medical School at UTHealth in Houston<\/span><\/a>, concurs. \u201cThe probability that you would squirt hand sanitizer onto your hand and let it sit there is low,\u201d Dr. Chang says. \u201cNo one uses hand sanitizer that way.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Both Drs. Fichtenbaum and Chang noted that it\u2019s more than the chemical action of hand sanitizer that makes it effective\u2014it\u2019s also the mechanical action of rubbing hands together. \u201cI think if the researchers had looked at rubbing the hand sanitizer into the hands and fingers, it might have been as effective as handwashing in killing the virus,\u201d said Dr. Fichtenbaum.<\/span><\/p>\n

The researchers acknowledged the limitations of their study and are looking at expanding their research to include hand rubbing.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>We are verifying the scientific significance of the act of hand rubbing in order to propose the best hand-rubbing regimen,\u201d said <\/span>Ryohei Hirose, the study\u2019s lead author. \u201c<\/span>Hand rubbing is expected to contribute significantly to the increase in the rate of ethanol concentration in infectious mucus due to an increase in convection.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

When (and how) to best use hand sanitizer<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

Experts say the best protection from the flu is a flu shot, then practicing proper hand hygiene. Meaning, make sure you\u2019re using an effective cleanser and applying it the right way.<\/span><\/p>\n

If you\u2019re using a hand sanitizer, the <\/span>Centers for Disease Control and Prevention<\/span><\/a> (CDC) recommends these dos and don\u2019ts.<\/span><\/p>\n