Protecting Your Child’s Health (NAPSA)—Inthe battle to banish germs, many parents are looking for an alternative to alcoholbased hand sanitizers. One reason is that some schools have banned these sanitizers from classrooms as they can pose a serious poison- ing risk to children if accidentally consumed. Not only do today’s most common handsanitizers consist of up to 70 percent ethyl alcohol, a higher alcohol percentage than many hard liquors, but The Journal of School Nursing also stated that aleohol-based hand sanitizers are undesirable in schools as they can present a safety hazard to children because they are flammable andirritating to eyes and open wounds. In response to these concerns, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recently updated its 2009 H1N1 flu recommendationsto say, “If soap and water are not available and alcohol-based products are not allowed, other hand sani- tizers that do not contain alcohol maybe useful.” “As a parent and doctor, I encourage my family and patients to safely protect themselves during cold and flu season,” said Dr. Scott Prose of Chicago. “After experiencing yearsof dry, cracked, painful hands and concernsover alcohol-based products, I exclusively use alcohol-free hand sanitizers in mypractice to fight germs without the risks associated with alcoholbased sanitizers.” “Because of inherent dangers, our school will not be using alcohol-based hand sanitizers in classrooms,” said Derry Martabano, Alcohol-free sanitizers can be equally effective as alcoholbased sanitizers and kinder to the skin. director of the Kiwi School in Mahopac, New York. “When hand washing isn’t available, we insist teachers use alcohol-free products to help prevent the spreadofillness in the classroom.” Fortunately, alcohol-free hand sanitizers can be equally effective as alcohol-based sanitizers. When hand washing isn’t available, many experts recommend using products such as Smart & Silky Kids Foaming Hand Sanitizer, which helps kill 99.99 percent of illness-causing germs on the skin in 15 seconds and is unscented and hypoallergenic. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) testing has confirmed its ability to reduce bacteria on the skin, andit has been shownto be effective against a broad range of dangerousbacteria. The active ingredient in this product is benzalkonium chloride, a nondrying, moisturizing and conditioning formula. The product is sold at Target and OfficeMax stores. www.officemax.com
