Sanitisers & Sanitising Agents

Sanitisers & Agents

Hand sanitisers work because of their antiseptic ingredients - they disrupt the cellular metabolism of the cell, effectively killing them. Washing hands with soap and water are always the preferred method for hand hygiene, and always if your hands are visibly dirty or grimy.

Hand sanitisers are a useful way to reduce the virus on your hands if you are in an area where there is no water available. In Australia, these sanitisers are regulated either as a cosmetic or therapeutic good. As the names indicate, cosmetics means they are low-risk active ingredients with no proof of efficacy, and therapeutic means the product must be proven to work. Due to the fact that cosmetic goods are not required to provide evidence of efficacy, cosmetic advertisements can only say things like “kills 99.9% of germs” – there is no specification of which germs and in what conditions. Cosmetic goods will list the ingredients but are not required to disclose specific details.

Importantly, part of the requirements for the therapeutic grade hand sanitiser, include listing the full ingredients, described the final concentration of alcohol post-mix (v/v) registering the product as a “Registered” product, and must provide evidence of safety and efficacy testing the product to the Therapeutic Goods Association (TGA).