To Purell or Not to Purell

Yesterday I took the kids to Panera for lunch.  While we were sitting there eating and watching it rain outside, I hear a Mom shouting at her child as her child tore out of the bathroom, "Don't touch anything until you've had your hand sanitizer!!"  There was a sense of urgency in her voice.  It was evident that hand sanitizer is a DIRE priority in her opinion.

I realized how silly she sounded when I think back to my childhood.  We didn't have hand sanitizer.  What we did have was good old soap and water.  Sometimes just water!  I survived.  We all did.  However, I'm JUST as guilty as this anonymous mother is of slathering that stuff all over my kids' hands as well as my own.  It's almost as if we believe that it puts a magical barrier around our children and ourselves to protect us from what evil lurks on doorknobs, tabletops and handrails.

I'm sure you've all heard the conflicting information about hand sanitizers.  Does it really work?  Does it subject us to any "superbugs"?  It's up to you to decide what and who you believe.  Here's a few links to check out:

The Myths vs. The Facts
Hand Sanitizers vs. Soap and Water

Last but not least, here's what the CDC has to say about clean hands and how to get them:  Handwashing 

It would seem that good old soap and water is good enough!



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