Hand Sanitizers Could Be Dangerous

According to a May 14 2007 Fox23 News report, four-year-old Halle Butler of Okmulgee, Oklahoma became very ill after eating hand sanitizer. Halle's pre-kindergarten teacher applied hand sanitizer to the child's hands before she ate lunch. However, Halle apparently licked the sanitizer off her hands rather than rubbing it in. The child soon became ill and was rushed to hospital where she showed signs of intense intoxication. Typical hand sanitizer contains 62-percent alcohol, significantly more than most hard liquor. Even a small amount would therefore be enough to make a small child drunk or ill. Thankfully, the child recovered after the alcohol left her system and is now doing well.

In the wake of this incident, Halle's parents are trying to raise awareness of the potential danger of hand sanitizers in the hope that similar events can be prevented. The school where the incident occurred has now stopped using hand sanitizers.

Halle's is not the only case of hand sanitizer poisoning reported. In another incident in San Diego, a teacher became ill after a 7th grade student spiked his drink with hand sanitizer. In other cases adults, including a prison inmate, have become ill after deliberately drinking hand sanitizer to get drunk.

Parents and those who work with children or other "at-risk" groups such as prison inmates should be vigilant when hand sanitizers are being used. Children should be strictly supervised when using such products. As the email notes, young children are apt to taste substances that older children and adults would never consider eating.

However, while the danger is real, hand sanitizers are not inherently dangerous if they are used as directed by their manufacturers. Also, it should be noted that, when used correctly, hand sanitizers can effectively reduce the spread of gastrointestinal and other illnesses. Therefore, as long as young children are carefully monitored when using hand sanitizers, their use in schools may be beneficial to students and the wider community as a whole.