In a war against the invisible, it’s hard to know when you’ve won. When it comes to household germs, how do you know for sure you have the right arsenal for the job? Antibacterial hand soaps, for instance – do they work?

 

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Charles Gerba, Ph.D., Professor of Environmental Microbiology at the University of Arizona says yes. And no.

That is, amid related but confusing terms – antimicrobial, sanitizer, disinfectant – identifying what antibacterial products really do might surprise you.

So, to pull together a short dictionary …

Antibacterial

These products typically target bacteria only, not fungi – and relevantly, NOT viruses, such as those that cause the common cold.

Antimicrobial

“Antimicrobial” is often an umbrella term applied to all products that kill any microorganisms at all – including “antibacterial” products.

Sanitizer

By definition, a sanitizer must kill 99.9 percent of certain germs that cause illness. It may also destroy some viruses.

Disinfectant

Kills or deactivates 99.99 percent of benchmark bacteria, fungi and viruses. It must carry a registration number from the EPA on its label. Disinfectants are made to work on hard surfaces – like the faucets on your bathroom sink, where sitting water forms a breeding ground for microorganisms.

If you really want to be sure a product will help prevent your next flu or cold, check the label for claims that it targets influenza or rhinovirus. It must be tested against each microbe it makes a special claim about. As far as hand cleansing goes, use of a hand sanitizer appears to be about as effective as regular washing with regular soap and water, which studies show reduces common illnesses by 30 to 50 percent, according to Gerba.

The kitchen is where antimicrobial products are likely to be the most help. Viruses are not the only bugs around the house to make one miserable. Food preparation can transfer germs like E. Coli and Salmonella to hands, to other food and consequently into the body. You’ll probably want to disinfect kitchen areas and give sponges frequent trips through the dishwasher or the microwave at very high temperatures. Cutting boards (both wood and plastic) should be cleaned and disinfected regularly. Change hand towels often.

Other Antimicrobial Products

These days you can find shower curtains, toilet seats and other goods with built-in triclosan. The purpose of incorporating antimicrobial agents into household items at this point is really not to improve human health by preventing transfer of germs, but rather to protect the product itself against bacteria that may stain or cause odor.
 
Is There Potential for Harm?

One theory floating around scientific communities, the “hygiene hypothesis," speculates that by over-killing germs, we deny our immune systems enough common illnesses to protect us from later developing allergies and asthma.

“Super bugs” are another fear, rising from overuse of prescription antibiotics so that some bacteria develop resistance against them. We haven’t seen germs respond to disinfectants and sanitizers this way, Gerba points out, likely because these products kill the microorganisms outright, giving them no chance to adapt.

Antibacterial hand soaps remain under consideration in this department. Some in the medical community are wary of popular use of these products, believing super bugs may indeed develop in response to accumulations in groundwater, though as yet there is no proof of this. And, says Gerba, some studies show antibacterial soaps may not be any more helpful to consumers than traditional soaps.

Dr. Stuart Levy, a professor at Tufts University, says people most likely to benefit from antibacterial hand soaps are those with weakened immune systems, such as pregnant women or the elderly, but that more widespread use is unnecessary.

 

According to Brian Sansoni, spokesperson for the Soap and Detergent Association (SDA), neither the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) nor a number of scientific studies have found super bugs developing in response to antibacterial products. "The theories linking antibacterial products to antibiotic resistance are overstated," Sansoni says. "The real-world research just doesn't back up those claims."

While the dialogue continues, and while yogurt’s “live cultures” remain proof that not all bacteria are bad, antibacterial products continue on store shelves, though they are being increasingly scrutinized by federal health experts (see sidebar, "FDA Comments").