Hand Washing: Soaps, Antibacterial Soaps, and Hand Sanitizers

 ( picture from examiner.com)

Hello Everyone,

How was your weekend? I hope everyone had fun! Today, I will try to persuade every single one of my readers to wash their hands correctly and to inform you guys the differences between soaps, antibacterial soaps, and hand sanitizers! I think all professions from teachers, artist, doctors, chefs, fire fighters, and EVEN bloggers need to wash their hands! and THEY NEED TO WASH THEIR HANDS CORRECTLY!

For this summer, I had nothing better to do, but to enroll myself in a Microbiology class at a nearby college! So, lately, I've been VERY paranoid by little, unseen animals (aka bacteria.) It's very annoying to know that bacteria ARE virtually everywhere, but I can't do ANYTHING about it!!! Anyways, the best way to cure my paranoia is to wash my hands after every bathrooms' visits, meals, and every time I touch something in the public.

Our Lab Results!!!!! Pretty gross! Little dots are bacteria colonies ...

To begin with, there are three main ways to clean our hands: soaps/detergents, antibacterial soaps, and hand sanitizers. (If I make NO SENSE! SORRY)

• Soaps/Detergents
• Soaps/Detergents functions as surfactants. It's known as a wetting agent to decrease the surface tension of a liquid, the interracial tension between two liquids, or that between a liquid and a solid. It emulsifies fats, oily firm, and skin. 
• The "soap" does not kill the bacteria, but mechanically removes the bacteria from our skin. Therefore "RISING" and "SCRUBBING" are super duper important to physically removing the bacteria. 
  

This is my agar plate with "BEFORE" and "AFTER" washing my hands. The small dots are bacteria colonies! Surprisingly, I had more "bacteria" after my wash my hands with soaps! After researching and reading textbooks, I found out these are actually my "resident flora"-- the good bacteria that colonize the body in a symbiotic relationship! I had no "transient flora"--bacteria maybe on the body for a short time, but do not colonize. The soap was actually washing away my skin and revealing more "good" bacteria.

• Anti-Bacterial Soaps
• Antibacterial soaps has a very low concentration (~ 0.15- 0.3%) of this ingredient called "Triclosan." At low concentration, Triclosan targets fatty acids synthesis by binding to an enzyme called ENR. This actually kill the bacteria! Overtime, the bacteria will alter their ENR genes so Triclosan won't work on them anymore. Also, the bacteria can "over-express" their ENR genes, or develop mechanism to pump the Triclosan out of their cells. SMART HUH!? After this, I'm staying away from Antibacterial soap, I don't want the bacteria on my body to resist toTriclosan and get stronger in the future!

• Hand Sanitizers 
• Hand sanitizers usually contain alcohol (ethanol or isopropanol). Alcohol is very effective against bacteria, fungi, and virus, but not spores or endospores. This denatures proteins and disrupts cytoplasmic membrane. Most hand sanitizers have a percentage of 62-70% alcohol because it does not evaporate right off your hands, but sits their long enough to kill the bacteria. COOL HUH? Check the percentage of alcohol on your hand sanitizers! It shouldn't exceed 70%, or it will not work properly!

Apparently, my friend's hands were pretty dirty! And the Hand Sanitizers DID HELP HER!

 Alright! This is the proper way to wash your hands! Remember! Step#3, RISING/SCRUBBING is very important to get the bacteria off your hands! Also, Step #5 is also important! Don't use your naked hands to turn off the water or open the door! Use a paper towel PLEASE!

-Happy Washing Hands!!!