T O R K HAND CLEANING FAQ’S GUIDE 1 T O R K HAND CLEANING FAQ’S GUIDE FAQ Sections: A. Hygiene B. Environment C. Liquid soap D. Foam soap E. General A. Hygiene: A1. Why is hand hygiene important? Good hygiene has enormously beneficial effects on our health, quality of life and in extending our lifespan. Since about 80%* of infections are spread via the hands, hand hygiene plays a vital role in maintaining our health. According to the highly respected CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) hand washing is the simplest, most effective and inexpensive way to prevent the spread of infectious bacteria and to achieve clean safe hands. *University Michigan, Infection Control & Epidemiology, 2009, www.med.umich.edu/ice/info.htm A2. Why use soap? Washing your hands in water alone will not remove all the dirt and bacteria on them. Soap, when mixed with water creates a lather, which efficiently breaks up and dissolves dirt, oils and fats. It also, in combination with rubbing the hands, lifts bacteria up from the skin, suspending them in the water allowing them to be easily rinsed away. A3. What type of soap is preferred and why? Liquid and foam soaps are easier to dispense, easier to apply on the hands, are neat and clean, have controlled dosage and are easy to use. High quality soaps not only remove dirt and pathogens, they also contain ingredients which moisturize the skin and help maintain the natural pH balance. A smooth healthy skin surface will have fewer bacteria than irritated skin (Wilson M. Microbial inhabitants of humans – their ecology and role in health and disease. Chapter 2. Cambridge Univeristy Press, ISBN 0 521 84158 5. 2005.). All Tork soaps achieved good results in dermatological testing and have a pH value close to normal skin making them kind to the hands. Hand washing effectively removes potentially disease causing micro organisms but leaves your own bacteria flora intact. A4. How to clean your hands? Recommended hand washing and drying routine: 1) Wet your hands with clean warm* water 2) Apply soap 3) Rub your hands together and scrub all surfaces for at least 15 seconds 4) Rinse hands under clean water 5) Dry hands thoroughly with a paper towel** Soap lathers better with warm water ** Redway K.Report and presentations for the European Tissue Symposium (ETS).2008. 2 T O R K HAND CLEANING FAQ’S GUIDE Alcohol based sanitizers Alcohol based sanitizers are a good complement to hand washing. They can be useful for example when soap and water are not available, but also in hygiene sensitive environments. Professional health care workers like them because they are effective, gentle to the hands and take less time than handwashing. But, remember, sanitizers do not remove dirt. You should always wash your hands with liquid soap and water if there is visible dirt, after contact with blood or after using the toilet; since sanitizers do not clean the hands of organic material they only disinfect them. A5. Is washing with soap enough? Drying your hands is just as important as washing them with soap. Bacteria love warm, moist hands since they provide the ideal conditions for rapid growth. If your hands are wet it is also much easier to pick up bacteria through contact with objects or by shaking hands. You will also leave many more bacteria on the surfaces you touch. Only clean dry hands are safe hands. Effective hand drying Hygiene institutes, including WHO*, widely recommend single use paper towels to dry your hands. Paper towels are preferred because they dry the hands quickly and mechanically remove residual soil and bacteria. *WHO 2009, WHO/IER/PSP/2009.07 Frequently washed hands In hygiene sensitive environments, such as healthcare and food preparation, hands need to be washed more frequently. This can lead to the skin becoming overly dry, so lotions can help to protect and moisturize the skin. A6. Why sealed systems are best? The purity of Tork soaps is assured through the sealed cartridge systems. The one-time-use pump and refill cartridge avoid accidental contamination during the refill or use. Recent research found 25% of open refillable soap dispensers tested in public washrooms to be contaminated with bacteria, whilst none of the sealed systems tested were contaminated.* Particularly in healthcare environments sealed cartridge systems are becoming mandatory in order to reduce the risk of contamination. The new Tork sealed system makes life easier, as refilling can be completed within a few seconds! *Source: Dr. Charles P. Gerba, University of Arizona, 2007. A7. Why is the pH of soap important? Healthy skin’s pH is normally between 4.5 and 6.0, which is slightly acidic compared to the neutral pH of 7. Skin pH has a fundamental role in the defence against unwanted bacteria. Maintaining the natural skin pH contributes to the optimal functioning of the skin barrier. The entire new Tork assortment has a pH value in the same range as normal skin in order to maintain the skin’s natural balance. A8. What does dermatological test mean? Dermatology testing means that the product has been tested and evaluated by a professional dermatologist. The highly respected institute ProDERM tests all of the Tork products. Additionally, the Tork range of hand cleaning & care products are only ever tested on human skin. 3 T O R K HAND CLEANING FAQ’S GUIDE During the dermatology test our liquid soap products are diluted with water and a sample is applied to human skin for 24 hours. Then the sample is removed and the skin reaction evaluated in two steps, after 24 and after 48 hours. Stay on products, like alcohol gel and lotions, are not diluted, and a 100% concentration is used for the test sample which is then evaluated in the same way as soap. The results of the tests show that all Tork formulations are very gentle to the skin. A9. What is the difference between soap and soap designated as anti-bacterial? It is important to remember that many of the dangerous bacteria are removed from your hands when you wash them using high quality soap and dry them with paper hand towels. Health institutions consider that for everyday applications, such as office and public washrooms, normal soap provides a perfectly sufficient anti-bacterial effect. All hand washing with soap has an antibacterial effect. Soap designated as “anti-bacterial” contains specific ingredients that have a proven extra anti-bacterial effect. This extra effect can be needed in situations where hands may be heavily contaminated e.g. health care personnel. To evaluate and verify the extra high antibacterial effect certain Tork products have been tested and conform to European Standards, EN 1499 and EN 1500. EN 1499, the hygienic hand wash standard, proves better reduction of bacteria when hand washing using antibacterial soap and water as compared to washing with a nonmedicated soap. EN 1500, the hygienic hand rub standard, proves the same or better reduction of bacteria as a 70% isopropanol hand sanitizer. If a product is sold as a cosmetic under the cosmetic directive it must not be called ‘antibacterial’ or ‘disinfectant’. Even a soap fulfilling the norm EN 1499 must not be called antibacterial soap if it is sold as a cosmetic. A10. Is pH neutral and pH close to skin the same thing? Neutral pH is 7,0 according to scientific definition of the pH scale. On the skin pH vary and on hands pH is about 4,5 with wide individual variations, this means a skin neutral pH for hands is 4,5. A11. What is the difference between virus and bacteria? Most viruses are much smaller than bacteria. They are often 10 to 100 times smaller than bacteria. The biggest difference between viruses and bacteria is that viruses must have a living host - like a plant or animal - to multiply, while most bacteria can grow on their own. Antibiotics can kill bacteria but not viruses. An example of a disease caused by bacteria is strep throat and an example of an affliction caused by a virus is the influenza. Many common diseases in the community are caused by viruses Hand sanitizers containing alcohol are efficient microbe killers. Alcohol rub sanitizers kill bacteria, multi-drug resistant bacteria (MRSA and VRE) and some viruses (including HIV, herpes, RSV, influenza, and hepatitis B & C) and some fungus. Alcohol sanitizers are less effective on non-lipophilic virus/ including hepatitis A and norovirus) and in-effective against spores. Alcohol rub sanitizers containing 70% alcohol kill 3.5 log10 (99.9%) of problem bacteria on hands 30 seconds after application. Tork Premium Hand sanitizer Alcohol Gel has a proven effect on bacteria approved according European Norm test EN 1500. Tork Antibacterial soap has not been tested for virus compared to a regular soap. Tork Premium Extra Hygiene HD has a proven effect on bacteria approved in European Norm test EN 1040 and EN 1499. A12. How can hand washing and drying help minimize spread of virus, such as swine flu? Washing and drying and mechanically remove both bacteria and virus from the hands, effectively reducing your risk of infection or transmission*. 4 T O R K HAND CLEANING FAQ’S GUIDE To wash your hands often with regular soap, and dry them thoroughly, for example with a single use towel, is the standard hand hygiene recommendation from most government health authorities, including CDC and FDA*. In general washrooms there are no need for any particular antibacterial soaps. If available, alcohol based products can be used as supplement during epidemics or a substitute when no easy access to soap and water is available.