Be Aware of Hand Sanitizers and Children

My Aunt Sherry told me about several cases in TX where children were poisoned by licking the liquid hand sanitizers off their hands. She also told me there were a couple of fatalities. As some of you know me, I had to do a little investigation on my own. You know we all try to keep our children free from germs and viral bugs, so we keep sanitizers with us at all times wipe their little hands. Well there have been a few cases where the children get too much hand sanitizer in the palm of their little hands causing alcohol poisoning. I've read were children will lick the sanitizer as soon as he/she has it put into their hands. I've also read were children find the bottle and either lick some or drink a little. Most if not all sanitizers contain 60-65% alcohol, which means 120-130 proof.

I found an article from the "International Herald Tribune" out of Washington state where "Product regulators warn marker for unlawfully marketing hand sanitizers for children. Federal health officials have warned Procter & Gamble Co. that it is unlawfully marketing a new hand sanitizer aimed for use by children." The company has tried to defend itself saying that it prevents colds, but P&G's spokesperson said that they would comply with the FDA regulations.

An article from the "Reporternews" in Texas reports a message from the Texas Panhandle Poison Center to be careful when using hand sanitizers on children. They don't recommend schools and parents to get rid of them all together, but be cautious. Parents should not make it a habit purchasing value packs of the sanitizer. Instead buy very small purse size and be sure to supervise your children using the product. The same goes for schools and they should be just fine.

My Source & Articles For Further Information: Snopes http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/sanitizer.asp ; International Herald Tribune http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/09/18/america/NA-GEN-US-Regulators-Sanitizer.php ; and Reporternews http://www.reporternews.com/news/2007/jun/18/e-mails-no-scam-hand-sanitizer-can-cause-alcohol/ .