Research shows antibacterial soaps to be useless; ingredients may be toxic

Monday, April 19, 2004 by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger Editor of NaturalNews.com (See all articles...) Tags: household toxins, household poisons, poison products

New research published in the Annals of Internal Medicine shows that household antibacterial soaps and other products offer no protection whatsoever against infections. I've said this for years: antibacterial products are at best a product marketing gimmick and, at worst, a health hazard to consumers. How could they be a health hazard? The antibacterial property of the soap is achieved by adding toxic chemicals to the soaps (that's what kills the bacteria, get it?). The chemicals used are frequently highly toxic substances: one of the most popular chemicals used in consumer soap products is chemically similar to Agent Orange, a biochemical weapon used in the Vietnam War. These chemicals get absorbed through the skin of consumers where they can cause nerve damage and liver damage.

Consumers have been blindly purchasing these products for years based on the unproven promise -- promoted by the soap sellers, of course -- that antibacterial products offer "protection from germs!" It's those nasty germs again! Yet, in reality, no kitchen is a sterile environment in the first place. Take a breath of air and you're inhaling "germs." Sleep in your bed and you're covered in germs. Dry yourself with yesterday's towel and you're scrubbing yourself with germs. We have germs all around us, which brings me to the immune system. The immune system's job is to take care of all those germs you have been exposed to, eliminating the need for toxic chemicals in your kitchen and on your dishes. In fact, the very idea of washing your dishes in Agent Orange strikes me as absurd, and yet it's very nearly what tens of millions of consumers are doing every day.

Word of advice: avoid all soaps, detergents, shampoos and other products containing fragrance or artificial colors. Use what I use: Dr. Bronner's soaps, available at any health food store. Or buy Sal Suds for your dishes. Check out the cleaning products made by a company called Seventh Generation. That's what I use for my laundry. I wouldn't touch any cleaning product sold at WalMart or regular grocery stores... those products are simply too toxic!

But I'm the exception. Most U.S. consumers regularly load up their shopping carts wish all sorts of toxic chemicals. Then they wash their clothes and dishes in those chemicals. Following that, they eat off those plates and wear the clothes that have been soaked in toxic chemicals. And they can't figure out why they feel so sick all the time. Go figure...