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Showing posts from December, 2016

Beware of those Antibactrial soap

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Antibacterial soaps kill bacteria and microbes – but so do plain soap and water. An FDA advisory committee found that using antibacterial soaps provides no benefits over plain soap and water. The FDA banned triclosan, triclocarban and 17 other antibacterial ingredients in hand soaps, effective September 2017. Many ingredients added to soap, plastics and textiles to make them “antibacterial” pose safety concerns and provide minimal, if any, benefits. After the ban, triclosan can still be added to many antibacterial consumer products. Triclosan is linked to liver and inhalation toxicity. Even low levels of triclosan may disrupt thyroid function. Triclosan and other antibacterial ingredients may encourage bacterial resistance to antibiotics. Antibacterial chemicals such as triclosan affect the natural environment. Wastewater treatment does not remove all triclosan, sending it into lakes, rivers and water sources, whcre it is very toxic to aquatic life.

Old Chinese proverb

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