There are some common misconceptions about hand sanitizer out there. We’re busting myths on everything from antibiotic resistance to skin damage – get the real facts on alcohol-based hand sanitizer.

TRUTH: Antibiotics operate completely differently than hand sanitizers. Typically, they’re ingested and slow the growth and reproduction of bacteria. PURELL® Advanced Hand Sanitizer destroys the cell walls, killing bacteria quickly and evaporating before germs have a chance to develop a resistance.

TRUTH: Superbugs – or antibiotic resistant bacteria – are created when bacteria build up a tolerance to treatments like antibiotics. The main ingredient in PURELL hand sanitizers is ethyl alcohol, which destroys cell walls and evaporates quickly from the skin, which means bacteria don’t have the opportunity to fight back and build resistance.

TRUTH: When it comes to germs on your skin, there are two types. Resident organisms and transient ones. Resident organisms live in all the layers of our skin, while transient organisms are acquired when we touch things, and can cause illness if they’re ingested before they can be removed from the skin.

TRUTH: Resident organisms are part of our normal microflora, and while it’s true that hand sanitizer does kill some of them on the outer layers of our skin, they repopulate quickly – and most live throughout the layers of our skin, and many remain unharmed. The transient organisms – the ones that can make you sick – are found on the surface layer of our skin and are eliminated when you sanitize.

TRUTH: On the surface, alcohol-based hand sanitizers may all seem identical, but how they’re formulated can impact their effectiveness, harshness on skin, and overall user experience. PURELL hand sanitizers are formulated to maximize germ-kill while still maintaining skin health, making sanitizing a more enjoyable experience and promoting good hand hygiene.

TRUTH: PURELL hand sanitizers are formulated with mild and effective ingredients. So even in high-use situations, you can count on a product that not only eliminates germs that may cause illness, it also helps keep your skin feeling soft.