Hand sanitizers can be a godsend for parents with young children, especially when soap and water aren’t readily available. Unfortunately, it can end up doing more harm and good. Recently, a few consumers of this product have found that if ingested, it can have an intoxicating effect. This is because most hand sanitizers contain 62 percent alcohol, more than vodka which has 40 percent. The high levels of alcohol is needed to kill germs.
This product is often given to young children to use. Young children tend to put their hands in their mouth. When this happens, they end up drunk. In a few cases, the result has landed the children in an emergency room. One four-year-old girl took to licking her hands after applying sanitizer. Another eight-year-old girl licked several globs of the solution after being egged on by a friend at a health club, landing her in intensive care for two days. Doctors told the girl’s father if she had ingested isopropanol instead of the ethyl alcohol that Purell uses, she may have died.
This product is often given to young children to use. Young children tend to put their hands in their mouth. When this happens, they end up drunk. In a few cases, the result has landed the children in an emergency room. One four-year-old girl took to licking her hands after applying sanitizer. Another eight-year-old girl licked several globs of the solution after being egged on by a friend at a health club, landing her in intensive care for two days. Doctors told the girl’s father if she had ingested isopropanol instead of the ethyl alcohol that Purell uses, she may have died.Children are not the only ones at risk. One 49-year-old prison inmate is said to have suffered from intoxication as the result of ingesting the product. He exhibited odd behavior, was red-eyed, combative, and philosophical. The same occurred for a 43-year-old recovering alcoholic who was intrigued by the 62 percent alcohol ingredient.
This product is highly popular and can be found in public places as well as purchased for private use. In order to prevent any tragic effects of eating hand sanitizers, some companies have added a bitter flavor to stop children from eating it. However, others have added fruity scents that appeal to children. Like all flavors, a person usually has a taste for it.
For related articles visit http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,289951,00.html and http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/features_julieshealthclub/2007/05/getting_drunk_o.html.
2 users commented in " People Getting Drunk From Hand Sanitizers "
Follow-up comment rss or Leave a TrackbackAre People really this simple?? I mean c-mon, it is a “chemical”. Where are the parents of the children who ate it??Hmmm, the adults are just simple and need therapy!! What a joke….besides I wouldn’t use the term “drunk” thats so whit trash….Maybe “Hand Sanitizer makes STUPID people Sick!!!”. Ha….Too Funny!!!
To the person who left the last comment; you must not have children. They are constantly putting thier fingers and hands in their mouth, and it is impossible to watch these children while they are at school. So before you decide to comment on an issue, get your facts straight. I do believe that an adult should know better than to intentionally eat hand sanitizer.
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