Community Chat

[GingerPeach]

---

@ChynnaBlue wrote:

I know that when I'm in a restroom at work or anywhere else, I seem to be washing my hands 3 times longer than anyone else. I'm not OCD about it, but I've seen some people barely get their fingers wet and then dry them off and leave. Yikes!

---

To be extra careful, don't forget to take a paper towel (it can be the same one used to dry the hands) to then open the restroom door.  

[Mominohio]

Just a personal observation over the years, but I have always thought (but have no scientific evidence for) that it is important to not only use warm/hot water, and wash thoroughly (the happy birthday song is what our kids were taught in school, sang twice to be sure you are clean), but I notice that people spend very little time rinsing.

I rinse for almost as long as I wash my hands. That dirty and germ infested soap, if left on the hands can't be really clean. So I have always paid attention to really good rinsing as well as the washing.

As for the hand sanitizer. I keep a small bottle in my purse and always use it and a diaper wipe after being in the grocery store, bank or gas station. And remember to keep your car's steering wheel wiped down and sanitized, as well as the gear shift. It does no good to clean your hands, but then touch those surfaces right away if they are never cleaned. For me, they are like the computer keyboard and the phone, needing to be sanitized regularly.

I use a clorox wipe on my keys and key chain and those little store tags attacted as well, on a regular basis. Again, clean hands mean nothing if those kinds of things are teaming with dirt and germs.

[corita]

---

@GingerPeach wrote:

---

@ChynnaBlue wrote:

I know that when I'm in a restroom at work or anywhere else, I seem to be washing my hands 3 times longer than anyone else. I'm not OCD about it, but I've seen some people barely get their fingers wet and then dry them off and leave. Yikes!

---

To be extra careful, don't forget to take a paper towel (it can be the same one used to dry the hands) to then open the restroom door.  

---

   ----------------------------

And, use the paper towel to turn off the water faucets!!

[ROMARY]

'Oh, well', I think that hospitals and medical offices are doing the best that they can.  There is a possibility that if they don't provide the hand sanitizers everywhere, that even more people/patients/visitors/docs would catch even more contagious illnesses from one another.  Docs and nurses just don't have the time and facilities to stop and wash their hands as they go up and down the halls, from room to room. I don't know for sure, but it (sanitizers) makes sense, to me, anyway. 

[GingerPeach]

---

@ROMARY wrote:

'Oh, well', I think that hospitals and medical offices are doing the best that they can.  There is a possibility that if they don't provide the hand sanitizers everywhere, that even more people/patients/visitors/docs would catch even more contagious illnesses from one another.  Docs and nurses just don't have the time and facilities to stop and wash their hands as they go up and down the halls, from room to room. I don't know for sure, but it (sanitizers) makes sense, to me, anyway. 

---

To be clear, hand sanitizers (alcohol-based) do not have the same effect on bacteria as anti-bacterial soaps (triclosan-based).  To date, alcohol hasn't been shown to cause germ mutations.

[chrystaltree]

---

@Lucky Charm wrote:

So are hand sanitizers good or bad? 

Doctors and nurses squirt some on their hands as soon as they enter a patient's hospital room. 

There's always a bottle at the 'checkout' in doctor's offices, dentist's offices and even at the lab where I got my blood work done last month. 

Are the hand sanitizers good (or unnecessary and these healthcare professionals just haven't gotten the memo yet)?

As stated previously, hand sanitizers have limited effectiveness and really should only be relied on when you have no access to soap and water.  The clerical staff puts them on the counters in medical offices, tissues too.  Who knows if it has the right alcohol level?  I do know that no one ever applies it properly, so it isn't doing anything beneficial.  I'm guilty of that myself.  I see the bottle, I squit, rub my hands together for 3 seconds.  I don't remove my rings and I touch the counter, the pen, I take the appointment paper from the receptionist.  So...what was the point of the hand sanitizer?  Just habit.    As for doctors and nurses, at my facility docs and nurses are expected to use soap and water whenever possible and in my own personal doctor's office, there are sinks.  And the doctors use them.  And if a doctor forgets, many patients will remind him or her.     

---

[1jenniferjuniper]

---

@ROMARY wrote:

'Oh, well', I think that hospitals and medical offices are doing the best that they can.  There is a possibility that if they don't provide the hand sanitizers everywhere, that even more people/patients/visitors/docs would catch even more contagious illnesses from one another.  Docs and nurses just don't have the time and facilities to stop and wash their hands as they go up and down the halls, from room to room. I don't know for sure, but it (sanitizers) makes sense, to me, anyway. 

---

Dr.'s and nurses had better take the time to wash thier hands properly, they are a major reason why germs spread from patient to patient. There are now germs that can live on surfaces for more than 24 hours and these super bugs are getting out of control.

Hand sanitizer is not the same as using soap and water.

[LTT1]

@howwhatwhen  I will find this, I think I saved the article and or site.

Sorry, I didn't "find" your comment until today... if you heart me, then it shows that a comment was made...

This wasn't the first article I read on the subject, but there are numerous articles on the unproven benefits of coconut oil.  

This reference article can be found at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23767861

Abstract

Since monolaurin, a monoglyceride formed in the human body in small quantities, has proven effective both in vitro and in vivo against certain strains of Staphylococcus aureus, an important question arises whether consuming a substance high in lauric acid content, such as coconut oil could increase intrinsic monolaurin production to levels that would be successful in overcoming staphylococcal and other microbial invaders. Both a cup plate method and a microdilution broth culture system were employed to test bacteriostatic and bactericidal effects of the test agents in vitro. To test effectiveness in vivo, female C3H/he mice (10-12 per group) were orally administered sterile saline (regular control), vancomycin (positive control), aqueous monolaurin, or two varieties of coconut oil (refined, bleached, deodorized coconut oil and virgin coconut oil) for 1 week before bacterial challenge and 30 days after. A final group received both monolaurin and vancomycin. In contrast to monolaurin, the coconut oils did not show bactericidal activity in vitro. In vivo, the groups receiving vancomycin, monolaurin, or the combination showed some protection--50-70% survival, whereas the protection from the coconut oils were virtually the same as control--0-16% survival. Although we did not find that the two coconut oils are helpful to overcome S. aureus infections, we corroborated earlier studies showing the ability of monolaurin to do such.

[LTT1]

@howwhatwhen  I referenced only one source from my (not extensive) reading.

If one googles "antibacterial/antifungal/antiviral properties of coconut oil," this theory is repeated over and over again.

The extent of the effectiveness of coconut oil cannot be very great... I would guess that these properties are mild as in garlic, oil of oregano, golden seal, other natural substances.

[Irshgrl31201]

I have a compromised immune system and my infectious disease doctor has been telling me this for years. I also don't use hand sanitizer. I wash my hands thoroughly many times a day though.