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The Science behind Hand Washing

April 10, 2020

If you haven’t noticed, there has been a plethora of articles written over the last couple of weeks on how effective washing our hands can be with regards to protecting against Covid-19 virus.  According to a Professor of Chemistry in South Wales Australia, the layer which surrounds the virus is made up of fat and proteins which, when put in contact with soap and water, repels and can tear apart the Virus’s membrane..  Palli Thordarson, a Professor at UNSW, says that the chemicals in soaps will disperse oils and fats when they combine with water making proper hand washing with soap and water a simple yet effective protection measure against the virus.

Here are links to several articles backed by science on the effectiveness of hand washing to combat the Covid-19 virus:

Professor Palli Thordarson’s Twitter post 

 

 

 

 

University of South Whales – Prof. Thordarson Bio

CDC – Publications, Data, & Statistics – https://www.cdc.gov/handwashing/publications-data-stats.html

  • From the CDC – Containing articles providing information related to hand washing and the use of hand sanitizer in a variety of settings around the world. They include key publications on related topics but are not intended to be a comprehensive list of references.

 

ScienceDirect – Elsevier – https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0195670115001474

  • Reducing viral contamination from finger pads: hand washing is more effective than alcohol-based hand disinfectants

 

N.Y. Times – https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/13/health/soap-coronavirus-handwashing-germs.html

  • Why Soap Works … At the molecular level, soap breaks things apart. At the level of society, it helps hold everything together.

 

The Guardian – https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/mar/12/science-soap-kills-coronavirus-alcohol-based-disinfectantsPall Thordarson

  • The science of soap – here’s how it kills the corona-virus 

 

Vox – https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2020/3/11/21173187/coronavirus-covid-19-hand-washing-sanitizer-compared-soap-is-dope

  • How soap absolutely annihilates the corona-virus – You’re not just washing viruses down the drain. Soap destroys the corona-virus, a chemistry professor explains

 

Newsweek – https://www.newsweek.com/this-why-soap-so-effective-stopping-spread-coronavirus-1491203

  • This is why Soap is so effective at stopping the spread of Coronavirus

The intention for this post is to share science backed information  related to protective measures one could take against COVID-19, specifically hand washing practices.   We are working diligently to keep up to date on the latest news surrounding this topic.  Please do not hesitate to contact us with links to information and/or science based data that has not been covered here and that is relevant to the post so that we can include/revise appropriately.   

Be well, Be kind, and Wash Your Hands.