I’m not a germ-phobe but since I became a mother, I like to carry a little bottle of hand sanitizer with me wherever we go. I find them more convenient than carrying around a bunch of wet wipes or going to the restroom only to find there are no paper towels and having to grab a bunch of toilet paper as a substitute. According to the Mayo Clinic, using hand sanitizers is a more effective way than soap and water to kill germs that cause illness.
This is especially important for families with young kids. According to an article in Woman’s Day (1/3/07), studies have found that using hand sanitizer regularly reduces the absentee rate in elementary school kids. A one month-long study of 292 families, each with at least one child in day care, found that the families who used hand sanitizer at home experienced a 59% fewer incidence of secondary gastrointestinal illness and 20% fewer secondary respiratory illnesses than the families who didn’t use hand sanitizer. Hand sanitizers typically kill 99.9% of all germs, require less drying and most convenient of all, you don’t need access to a sink. If Tyler and I are out and he needs to “do #2” and there aren’t any seat covers, I will take some tissue and put a little sanitizer on it and wipe the seat.
I usually pick up several bottles to keep at home and for traveling. We use the pump kind for home and the smaller squeeze bottles for travel. They’re not expensive and you can pick up the different types at the dollar stores, Target or Walmart. When buying a hand sanitizer make sure you read the labels carefully because all hand sanitizers aren’t the same or rather as effective. You need to buy one that has enough alcohol as recommended by the FDA. You need a concentration of 60 to 90% ethanol, isopropanol or ethyl alcohol.
See also:
Five Ways to Prepare for Cold and Flu Season