FDA has identified 9 hand sanitizer products that may contain a toxic ingredient

[Teh_Lurv]

FYI to everyone on ERA as I'm sure most of us here are buying whatever hand sanitizer we can find at stores.

FDA advises consumers not to use any hand sanitizer manufactured by Eskbiochem SA de CV in Mexico, due to the potential presence of methanol (wood alcohol), a substance that can be toxic when absorbed through the skin or ingested. FDA has identified the following products manufactured by Eskbiochem:

• All-Clean Hand Sanitizer (NDC: 74589-002-01)
• Esk Biochem Hand Sanitizer (NDC: 74589-007-01)
• CleanCare NoGerm Advanced Hand Sanitizer 75% Alcohol (NDC: 74589-008-04)
• Lavar 70 Gel Hand Sanitizer (NDC: 74589-006-01)
• The Good Gel Antibacterial Gel Hand Sanitizer (NDC: 74589-010-10)
• CleanCare NoGerm Advanced Hand Sanitizer 80% Alcohol (NDC: 74589-005-03)
• CleanCare NoGerm Advanced Hand Sanitizer 75% Alcohol (NDC: 74589-009-01)
• CleanCare NoGerm Advanced Hand Sanitizer 80% Alcohol (NDC: 74589-003-01)
• Saniderm Advanced Hand Sanitizer (NDC: 74589-001-01)

FDA tested samples of Lavar Gel and CleanCare No Germ. Lavar Gel contains 81 percent (v/v) methanol and no ethyl alcohol, and CleanCare No Germ contains 28 percent (v/v) methanol. Methanol is not an acceptable ingredient for hand sanitizers and should not be used due to its toxic effects.

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FDA Advises Consumers Not to Use Eskbiochem Hand Sanitizers

FDA Advises Consumers Not to Use Eskbiochem Hand Sanitizers due to the potential presence of methanol

www.fda.gov

 

[smurfx]

germ-x is good then.

 

[TheGhost]

germ-x is good then.

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Yup that's all I care about lol. It's the only one I can get my hands on and just ordered a 30 pack

 

[BasilZero]

SmartCare hand sanitizer is the only sanitzer I can find....I'm assuming its good and has no affiliation with CleanCare lol....

 

[julian]

I feel like cause of the shortage at the start of the lockdowns I have a random assortment of hand sanitizers. Blegh. Going to have to keep the list handy as I find the various bottles I've got.

 

[CherryWoodFuton]

Got some Purell and Trader Joes so I'm good

 

[Nude_Tayne]

Would be nice if they included pictures of the products. I can't remember the name of every hand sanitizer I've used but I know what the bottles look like.

 

[B.O.O.M.]

I have Suave, Cleansmart and mountain falls.

 

[Seductivpancakes]

I stuck to soap instead of hand sanitizer when everyone was hoarding at the start of the lockdowns.

 

[electroshockwave]

Who's bright idea was it to put methanol in hand sanitizer? It can be absorbed through your skin.

 

[Deleted member 11822]

I stuck to soap instead of hand sanitizer when everyone was hoarding at the start of the lockdowns.

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You made the right call. Hand washing is where it's at.

 

[WaveBird]

I only ever have Purell, Germ X, or the little Bath and Body Works ones so it looks like I'm A-OK

 

[Pbae]

I've been really hesitant to purchase hand sanitizer from unknown companies and this isn't helping. When I do find some stock I try and get a few at a time.

 

[smurfx]

Yup that's all I care about lol. It's the only one I can get my hands on and just ordered a 30 pack

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yeah its the only one i can get regularly at costco.

 

[Ra]

Germ-X gang, we good. Salute salute.

 

[TheGhost]

Would be nice if they included pictures of the products. I can't remember the name of every hand sanitizer I've used but I know what the bottles look like.

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💯
Show me what the bottles look like. I'm not looking at distributing people or company names. I should just learn to make it myself.

 

[BlackSalad]

FDA have laxed a lot of regulations around hand sanitizers and basically have halted any OTC certifications/validations that need to be done for efficacy and safety due to COVID.

I run a lab that does testing and requests for ethanol are through the roof. There is a lot of bad ethanol out there and these "start-up" companies trying to take advantage of the situation have no idea what they're doing and are buying any ethanol they can get their hands on.

-Methanol
-Acetal
-Acetaldehyde
-Benzene
-tert/iso butanol

Common things I see in samples.

If your hand sanitizer doesn't smell like regular ethanol or has an odor like a tequila, rum, or rubbing alcohol, don't use it.

 

[Pandora012]

...i just use regular soap.

 

[____]

Hand sanitizer feels terrible. Know what doesn't feel terrible? Freshly washed hands.

 

[Devilgunman]

When I read the title I knew that toxic ingredient must be methanol. I have a friend in Thailand who is a chemist professor and his lab took in hundreds of off-brand sanitizers in the market to do component analysis, and nearly 30% of them used methanol. It's dangerous as fuck. Methanol can be absorbed through skin and cause permanent blindness in serious case.

 

[Chopchop]

Bah.

Yeah, methanol is the really scary version of alcohol that used to be in rubbing alcohol.

It was replaced with ethyl alcohol because back when the US tried prohibition, people turned to rubbing alcohol to get their fix, and went blind.

 

[CDX]

I haven't found hand sanitizer since March, and

 

[brochiller]

FDA have laxed a lot of regulations around hand sanitizers and basically have halted any OTC certifications/validations that need to be done for efficacy and safety due to COVID.

I run a lab that does testing and requests for ethanol are through the roof. There is a lot of bad ethanol out there and these "start-up" companies trying to take advantage of the situation have no idea what they're doing and are buying any ethanol they can get their hands on.

-Methanol
-Acetal
-Acetaldehyde
-Benzene
-tert/iso butanol

Common things I see in samples.

If your hand sanitizer doesn't smell like regular ethanol or has an odor like a tequila, rum, or rubbing alcohol, don't use it.

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I'm in a similar business. It's scary the number of people who have thought they can use ethanol denatured with methanol to make hand sanitizer.

 

[Maximum Spider]

...i just use regular soap.

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That's not viable when your in between spaces without running water.

 

[THE210]

Germ-X gang, we good. Salute salute.

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Doesn't at least one form of Germ-x have a non alcohol formula that's not proven to work on COVID?

 

[chandoog]

Purell and Germ-X user here. All good thankfully.

 

[chuckddd]

It's been a long, long time since I've seen a bottle of Purell. Probably December.

 

[Deleted member 388]

...i just use regular soap.

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You think you're better than us?!

I can't imagine touching a subway pole and then not touching anything else until getting to a sink.

 

[Titik]

Hand sanitizers should only be used as a last resort if you can't wash your hands right away. It should not the the main way you protect yourself from contamination from touching surfaces .

 

[Titik]

You think you're better than us?!

I can't imagine touching a subway pole and then not touching anything else until getting to a sink.

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Just make a habit of not touching your face, then wipe your phone with a sanitizing wipes and washing your hands whenever you get home/get to your office/indoors.

 

[Kyrios]

Thanks for the pics FDA!

:|

 

[SapientWolf]

Just make a habit of not touching your face, then wipe your phone with a sanitizing wipes and washing your hands whenever you get home/get to your office/indoors.

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Hand washing is a must, but it seems like sanitizer in between would be safer than nothing (provided that it's non toxic).

 

[CatAssTrophy]

The non-gel type hand sanitizers you see on shelves at the store no one is buying... I went to a shop not long ago that was using one of those, and it smelled awful. Something is wrong with the formula they're using for those, so it's not surprising to see this report as well as learning from what y'all posted that they relaxed regulations.

One of them I used smelled like straight up tequila.