Advisory Against Use Of Anti-Bacterial Soap And Cleaning Products
Virtually every known kind of disease-causing bacterium has mutated to survive some or all of the drugs that once proved effective against it. Hand soaps and cleaning products that contain an “antibacterial” ingredient are linked to this health problem. Warm water and soap are as effective as the anti-bacterial soaps and should be used instead.
Antibiotic hand soaps contain the antibiotic-like chemicals triclosan and triclocarbon, and send some two million to 20 million pounds of the compounds into sewage streams each year. In addition, studies indicate that these compounds show up in more than half of the nation’s rivers and streams. These chemicals are found in sewage sludge destined for reuse as crop fertilizer. Groundwater and wells can also be affected by these products and by the use of antibiotics in livestock.
This advisory recommends that consumers refuse to purchase these products, which reports indicate European retailers are pulling off their shelves. According to scientific studies, the products don’t prevent the spread of sickness any better than ordinary soap and water. Therefore, using these products provides no benefit and increases the risk of increasing bacteria that is resistant to antibiotics.