Antibacterial hand sanitizers and soaps can be dangerous to your health!

You see them everywhere. The grocery store, the BART (subway) stations, hospitals, and many other public locations. These convenient dispensers of hand sanitizers are strategically placed and free to use. What may seem like a good idea, could actually be hazardous to your health. 

Many sanitizing products, including dish soap, hand soaps, toothpaste, deodorants, and even clothing may contain a chemical called Triclosan. The FDA is taking a closer look at Triclosan. Studies have shown that it is hazardous to your health and is carcinogenic. 

Like many chemicals, when mixed with another chemical, a dangerous reaction can occur. Triclosan, when mixed with chlorine that is routinely added to our water, reacts to make chloroform gas. So, brush your teeth with a toothpaste containing Triclosan, and you could end up inhaling chloroform gas. How about soaking in a nice warm bubble bath with bubble bath that contains Triclosan? It doesn’t sound so good now.

Prolonged exposure has been found to cause cancer and disrupts the endocrine system. Triclosan can build up to toxic levels in our bodies and contribute to increase resistance to antibiotics. It has been found in umbilical cord samples and in the breast milk of 60% of women tested.