Brooke Genkin
It is so common to find products with antibacterial properties that many consumers are unaware they are even purchasing items with antibacterial traits. A majority of soaps sold in the United States today-over two-thirds of all liquid hand soaps and one-thirds of all bar soaps-contain antibacterial agents.
So accustomed to the antibacterial way of life, it is hard for us to imagine using cleaning products that aren’t loaded with antibacterial chemicals. Still, we need to be careful in using these products, especially over prolonged periods of time.
Antibacterial agents such as Triclosan, the leading germ-fighting compound in antimicrobial soaps, act by destroying enzymes within the bacterial cell walls so that they are unable to replicate. Unfortunately, Triclosan and other similar compounds act on good bacteria as well as the bad. The benign bacteria covering the surfaces of our bodies and our homes die, while many dangerous bacteria are left and continue to thrive.
Numerous scientists also believe that continued use of any antibacterial/antibiotic agents encourage bacteria to mutate and develop a resistance to antibacterial chemicals. This resistance is becoming such a concern that the World Health Organization and the Alliance for the Prudent Use of Antibiotics have launched global campaigns to educate health care workers and individuals about the risks involved in overusing antibacterial agents.
There is also some concern that young children who have grown up in an antibacterial world will not develop the proper immunities to certain bacteria. The belief is that by being exposed to fewer environmental bacteria, these children will not develop proper antigens and antibodies.
According to studies by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), this deficiency in immunity could very well have a significant impac on the health of individuals later in life, as they may encounter bacteria that their bodies are not able to sufficiently fight.
Experts say that hand washing, even without antibacterial soap, is still the best way to get rid of bacteria. The CDC recommends that people stick to regular liquid and bar soaps and use warm water to create a healthy lather before rinsing again. Washing with non-antibacterial soap is probably your safest bet.
While prolonged use of antibacterial soaps may have implications for society as a whole, the daily use of these soaps has not been explicitly linked to an increase or decrease in risks associated with contracting diseases.
So don’t throw your Dial out just yet, but do consider looking for non-antibacterial products the next time you hit the drug store aisles.
For more information, please see www.cdc.gov.
Brooke Genkin is a junior in the College of Arts & Sciences majoring in Anthropology with a concentration in Public Health Studies. Information for her column is provided by experts at the Habif Health and Wellness Center and other sources.