Anti-bacterial hand gels are flying off the shelves at pharmacies across the country faster than Amazon can deliver them in bulk to your front door, but we were curious: When push comes to shove, does hand sanitizer work? The short answer: Yes, it does, and having some on hand (heh) is a good idea. But it’s not as simple as squirt, rub, et voilà! Clean! As Dr. Purvi Parikh, M.D., allergist and infectious disease specialist at NYU Langone Health explains.
“One of the reasons hand sanitizers work to keep you healthy is by rubbing your hands together,” Dr. Parikh says. “The friction from the rubbing helps break down viruses and bacateria that make you sick.”
Hand sanitizer works when it’s made up of at least 60 percent alcohol, according to the CDC. The agency recommends washing your hands thoroughly with soap and water as a first line of defense against everything from the sniffles your kids pick up at daycare to more serious illnesses like the novel coronavirus. But, when you’re shuffling from school drop-off to that lunch meeting across town and back again for your presentation at the office, sometimes a sink is nowhere to be found and it’s hand sanitizer to the rescue.
To make sure you’re getting the most out of your bottle of Purell, however, it’s important to follow these steps: