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Dear
EarthTalk: My pediatrician swears by those gel hand
sanitizers for lowering the risk of my family getting sick
during cold and flu season. But I’ve also heard that
these products can be dangerous to kids if ingested. Are
there any safer alternatives that work just as well?
-- Jason Blalock,
Oakland, CA
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Although
gel hand sanitizers have proven in tests to reduce
gastrointestinal illnesses and the spread of contagions
compared to ordinary soap and water, their high alcohol
content can be poisonous to children who ingest them.
© Living is Easy with Eyes Closed
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A
2005 study by the Children’s Hospital in Boston compared
illness rates across a study group of 292 families—half
of them got hand sanitizers while the other half were given
literature advising them of the benefits of frequent hand
washing. The findings revealed that those families who used
hand sanitizers experienced a 59 percent reduction in gastrointestinal
illnesses and that the increased use of sanitizers correlated
to a decreased spread of contagions in general.
Another
study conducted at Colorado State University yielded similar
conclusions, that alcohol-based hand sanitizers were as
much as twice as effective as either regular soap or antibacterial
soap at reducing germs on human hands. A Purdue University
study, however, concluded that while alcohol-based hand
sanitizers may kill more germs than plain or triclosan-based
soaps, they do not prevent more infections that make people
sick. Instead they may kill the human body’s own beneficial
bacteria by stripping the skin of its outer layer of oil.
The down side
of the gel/alcohol products is their danger as poison, especially
for young children who may ingest the gel by licking it
off their hands or eating it directly out of dispensers.
Purell and Germ-X, two of the leading brands, each contain
62 percent ethyl alcohol. While this alcohol is what gives
the products their germ-busting power, it also puts kids
at risk of alcohol poisoning. A few squirts of the hand
sanitizer—which is equivalent to124 proof booze—is
enough to make a kid’s blood alcohol level .10, which
is the equivalent of being legally drunk in most states.
So what’s
a concerned parent to do? Unfortunately, the so-called greener
alternatives out there aren’t safe to swallow either.
EO Hand Sanitizer, for example, though it uses organic lavender
oil also contains alcohol to sanitize the skin surface,
and would also be considered poison if a large enough amount
was ingested. Similarly greener (but still not safe to eat)
products are available from Avant and All Terrain.
For now, soap
and warm water—and constant nagging of your kids to
wash their hands—may be the safest way to sanitize.
Also, make sure that any hand sanitizer dispensers you may
still use are kept out of the reach of little hands.
But who knows
how we’ll be sanitizing our hands in the future. Researchers
at Arizona State University have found that certain types
of natural clays pulled right from the ground are highly
effective at killing bacteria. One type of green clay has
been shown to do a number on E. coli, salmonella, staph
and other bacteria known to make people sick. But the research
is still in its infancy, so don’t expect to see moms
pulling jars of clay out of their purses anytime soon.
CONTACTS:
EO
Products; OrganicBeautySource.com;
MotherNature.com.
Dear EarthTalk:
What are the environmental consequences of leather? Are
there any good alternatives?
-- Brianna Jacobs,
Somerville, MA
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One
of many non-leather shoe offerings from vegetarianshoesandbags.com.
Pictured here are high heels made of stylish faux
snakeskin.
© vegetarianshoesandbags.com
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Leather is everywhere—from
shoes and belts, to purses, wallets, jackets, furniture
and car seats. Most probably assume that the leather that
finds its way into our wardrobes and living spaces is a
byproduct of the meat industry. But while cows are certainly
the most popular animals to use for leather goods, in truth
most of our leather is sourced from overseas, from countries
like China and India, where a host of animals may be raw
material for our bags and belts, including horses, deer,
sheep and, in more exotic cases, alligators or snakes. All
of which may make an animal-lover or vegetarian queasy.
But environmentalists
have reason to forgo leather, too. Processing leather requires
copious amounts of energy and a toxic stew of chemicals
including formaldehyde, coal tar, and some cyanide containing
finishes. The tanning process is just as pollutant-laced,
and can leave chemicals in the water supply (as described
in the best-selling book and popular movie, A Civil Action)
and on the hands (and in the lungs) of developing world
workers.
Tanneries are
top polluters on the Environmental Protection Agency’s
(EPA) “Superfund” list, which identifies the most
critical industrial sites in need of environmental cleanup.
Due to their toxicity, reports organicleather.com, “many
old tannery sites can’t be used for agriculture, or
built on, or even sold.” That website is the home of
Mill Valley, California, retailer Organic Leather, which
offers a return to the tanning practices of old—using
animals that are organically fed and humanely raised and
a tanning process that uses plant tannins, vegetable tannins
or smoke to cure the leather with zero toxicity in the process.
But with the
wealth of fashionable faux leather alternatives, there’s
no need to ever wear animal skins. So-called “cruelty-free”
fashions have advanced in leaps and bounds, with variations
on every style of handbag, wallet, belt and boot. Online
“vegan boutique”Alternative Outfitters even has
a version of the ubiquitous Ugg boot made with microsuede
“shearling” on the outside and synthetic wool
inside, while Iowa-based Heartland Products sells western-style
non-leather boots and non-leather Birkenstock sandals. Science
has come up with plenty of comfortable, durable alternatives
to materials made with animal products. These include vegan
microfiber, which claims to match leather in strength and
durability, and Pleather, Durabuck and NuSuede.
Products made
with these synthetic materials tend to be less expensive
than their leather counterparts and are being produced by
major manufacturers like Nike, whose Durabuck athletic and
hiking shoes “will stretch around the foot with the
same ‘give’ as leather... and are machine washable,”
according to company sources. And you won’t need to
adjust your style, either. Vegetarianshoesandbags.com offers
everything from purple faux snakeskin peep-toe pumps for
hitting the clubs to hemp sneakers with recycled outsoles
that look skate park-ready, to distinctive Pleather bags
and versatile woven belts.
CONTACTS:
Alternative
Outfitters; Heartland
Products; Organic
Leather; Vegetarian
Shoes and Bags.
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