I wonder about these hand sanitizers. They seem to be appearing everywhere. In general, I think they're a good substitute in situations where soap and water is not available, but they seem to be coming into use by food handlers instead of soap and water, often placed right next to a wash basin instead of soap.

I do the maintenance work for a women's center that serves a variety of women, including some who are homeless, drug users, or prostitutes. The nuns in charge had me put up half a dozen hand sanitizer dispensers, but I refused to put them next to sinks - I had previously installed soap dispensers next to the sinks, and I keep them filled with antibacterial soap. I noticed recently that somebody has put sanitizer bottles next to the sinks, most noticeably next to the kitchen sinks.

From what I've read, soap and water is still the best sanitizer because contaminants are washed down the drain. Anybody have additional information on the effectiveness of these sanitizers, compared with soap and water?

As for the dangers of the alcohol in hand sanitizers, I have my doubts. No cleaning substances are meant to be ingested, so reasonable precautions should be taken with all of them - but I see no particular reason for alarm about hand sanitizers. It's probably not good for kids to eat laundry soap or hand soap or bleach or drain cleaner, either. Why get hysterical about hand sanitizer?

Well, come to think of it....I knew a college-educated woman who would spray Lysol on her kid's pacifiers and bottle nipples when they got dirty - and then give the thing to the kid with the wet Lysol still on it.

-Joe-