Hand Sanitizer and the Environment

Medically the use of hand sanitizer is recommended for health concerns. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommends the use of sanitizing products in healthcare settings. Studies have shown the clear benefits of its use. The sanitizers decrease gastrointestinal sicknesses within the home and reduce the amount of illness in schools that use them. Thus it decreases the amount of absenteeism in the schools. However they recommend that the sanitizer being used contains at least 60% alcohol for it to be effective. Otherwise the product is simply moving the bacteria around your hands.

However, environmentalists are concerned with the impact of the plastic waste produced from small bottles of sanitizer on the environment. This is because the recycling
rate is low. Plastic is generally bad for our environment because it is non biodegradable. Some plastic bottles are shown to give off dangerous chemicals. The softer and more flexible the plastic the easier it breaks down, but sanitizer bottles are generally made of thicker plastics than say a disposable water bottle. The chemical make up of the plastic is bad on the environment. The excess waste is bad on the environment as well.

So how can we benefit from hand sanitizer without the negative impact of millions of bottles of empty plastic? Hand sanitizer dispensers eliminate the harmful environmental effects of hand sanitizer. Not only do these dispensers offer improved hand hygiene and decreased illness, they are easier on our environment than small plastic bottles of sanitizer. There are other benefits of choosing the dispensers. They dispense an accurate amount of the sanitizer every time. Many have automatic dispensing therefore eliminating the need to touch dirty surfaces in order to benefit from it.

To receive the complete benefit of using hand sanitizer it must be applied correctly. To correctly apply the sanitizer you should dispense a dime sized amount into the palm of your hand. Rub your hands together ensuring the sanitizer is spread over the entire surface of your hands. Let it dry before you continue touching other surfaces.