Tip of the Day- Put away Your Antibacterial Soap

by Alison Palmer | More from this Blogger

12 Feb 2007 09:13 AM

Ok, some of you are going to think I'm really off the wall with this one. Here it goes anyway. Do you remember that scene at the end of War of the Worlds (sorry I never could get through the book so I don't know if it's there as well) where the heroes are pontificating on the reasons why the robot monsters are suddenly imploding. The only line I remember from the whole movie is: "We've earned the right to be here."

I'm probably quoting it wrong. I didn't like the movie much. Here's the deal though, they were right. They go on to talk about how we as a human race have fought with all the diseases of the planet and learned to overcome. We've developed immunity and defenses that allow us to continue to survive. The aliens didn't know what to do with our simple germs that we have to deal with every day.

What does all of this have to do with antibacterial soap? The fact of the matter is, in most cases we're hurting ourselves more than we're helping when we use it every day, every time we wash our hands.

This is what history and the researchers tell us about trying to kill off everything indiscriminately. The bugs don't go away, they only get stronger.

Have you experienced the "pleasure" of a child with multiple ear infections? You go to the doctor and he gives you the pink stuff. The child gets better. Repeat, repeat, repeat, and then suddenly the child doesn't get better. You take the child to the doctor again and he switches you from pink stuff to white stuff. Repeat, repeat, repeat, until that doesn't work any more either. The bacteria gets smarter, it mutates and becomes resistant to our defenses. They get harder to kill. The same thing applies to the germs on our hands. If we repeatedly tell them to go away they act just like telemarketers- they become more persistent to get their voices heard.

Yes, antibacterial soaps kill germs, but research has yet to prove that we are in turn less sick. What it has proven is repeated, unneeded exposure to antibacterial soaps makes common germs more resistant and harder to kill. Research has also proven that what we wash with is less important than how we wash.

Here's the deal. Put away the expensive antibacterial soap and pull out the regular stuff until someone gets sick. Then, switch off for the antibacterial and hand sanitizers. That's when they're most needed and will be most effective.

Proper hand washing with regular soap and water is all you need on a daily basis.

Related Articles:

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Combating Household Germs

How To Avoid Getting Sick When Your Kids Are Sick

Learn more about Alison Palmer

Writing is Alison's favorite past time, but you can also frequently find her reading, playing piano, cooking, taking long walks, sewing, or playing with her family.

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Julie Gentry (5915) 12 Feb 2007 09:50 AM

ITA Alison. We use it for cuts and scrapes, not for everyday cleaning. I had an old boss who was as healthy as horse, never got sick, ever. I asked why and he said it's because they used to swim in the East River as kids -- disgustingly filthy, but it built up his immune system! :-)

Anna Glendenning (4234) 12 Feb 2007 10:15 AM

I completely agree with you. There was a study a few years back about children who grew up on Farms... and who worked around all the Germs of the day-to-day farm life. These children appear to get sick less often and it is believed their immune system is built up due to exposure that their bodies can learn to defend.

We use AntiBacterial soap and Peril when we go to public bathrooms, or sit in shopping carts, or ride the rides at Disneyland. Otherwise, we just use regular soap and water to wash hands. Once a week I wipe down light switches, toilet handles and door knobs in the house with Bleach to kill off the hand things that get on them.