When I was taking the subway regularly, I was using alcohol-based hand sanitizer all the time. Even the so-called moisturizing kinds were making the skin on my hands dry and cracked. I had to carry moisturizer around with me to combat the effects of the alcohol. I still use hand sanitizer when I’m out and about – I always keep some in my car. So, I was really excited to try the new Anti-bacterial Moisturizing Hand Cream from CLEAN.
You probably know about the CLEAN perfumes that smell…well, clean. Shower-fresh if you will. The company has come out with this new hand sanitizer that keeps germs away for 4 hours and it actually works better than most of the hand moisturizers I’m already using! Seriously – not like, “Well, my hands don’t feel quite as tight…” More like, “Wow – my hands are so soft!” I would actually recommend this moisturizer even if it didn’t have anti-bacterial protection.
The anti-bacterial agent CLEAN uses is called benzethonium chloride. They don’t use alcohol or triclosan. People have raised concerns over the use of triclosan recently, so CLEAN decided not to include it in the product. I looked up these ingredients on the EWG’s Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database. You have to take the EWG’s ratings with a grain of salt. If it’s not water, it’s got some sort of dangerous rating. But, it’s great to have the information so you can make your own decisions. Triclosan has a safety rating of 7 (not good) and benzethonium chloride has a rating of 4 (moderate). So, basically it’s the difference between a really pissed off rattlesnake and a slightly irritated skunk. Now, you have to ask yourself if the risk of the germs listed below is worse than the risk of the ingredients. I’m gonna go ahead and say yeah – it’s worth it.
CLEAN’s Anti-bacterial Moisturizing Hand Cream protects against these bad guys for up to 4 hours after applying:
- Salmonella typhimurium
- Salmonella choleraesius
- Shigella dysentereiae
- Citrobacter
- Staphylococcus epidermidis
- Escerichia coli
- Staphylococcus hominis
- Streptococcus pyogenes
- Staphylococcus aureus
- Rhinovirus
- Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus (VRE)
- Pseudomonas aeruginosa
- Proteis vulgaris
- Acinetobacter sp.
- Proteus mirabilis
- Klebsiella pneumoniae
- Shigella flexneri
- Mycobacterium Bovis (BCG)
- Enterobacter aerogenes
- Serratia marcescens
- Avian Bird Influenza H5N
So, I say – everything in moderation. You don’t need to use hand sanitizer ALL day long. Just use it when you can’t get to a sink to wash your hands. I keep my tube of CLEAN in the car and it always comes in handy.
Jen
