Are We Over-Sanitizing?

The days of wiping down groceries may be coming to an end, but will Americans' reliance on hand sanitizer follow suit?

This week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a report confirming that the risk of catching the coronavirus from surfaces is low. Kevin Minbiole, PhD, chair of the Department of Chemistry at Villanova University, weighs in on hand sanitizer use—and whether too much sanitizing is a bad thing.

"I think that a lot of the concern on the overuse of hand sanitizer a decade ago or so was the overuse of triclosan, a strong antimicrobial agent that would persist in wastewater," said Dr. Minbiole, referring to a theory that arose following the H1N1 pandemic in 2009. At that time, scientists expressed worry that bacteria were becoming resistant to hand sanitizer. "It seemed like overkill to go beyond soap and water or simply ethanol (alcohol)—or to add triclosan into hand soap," Dr. Minbiole continued.

While Dr. Minbiole does not dismiss this theory, he notes, "I believe there was merit to the concerns of overapplying antibiotics and antiseptics when they were not needed."

Looking to the future, Dr. Minbiole does not see hand sanitizer playing as big a role. "I don't foresee a backlash so much here, as folks recognize that this particular virus is more of an airborne concern," he says.