Jahnavi Sarma
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Written By: Jahnavi Sarma | Published : July 30, 2020 12:19 PM IST
The FDA has warned that hand sanitisers that list ethanol as one of the ingredients have later tested positive for methanol contamination.
Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a surge in demand of hand sanitisers in the market. But this has led to many small businesses jumping into the fray to cash in on the demand. Some of them use dangerous substances like methanol to make their products.
Recently the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has identified around 77 hand sanitizers as dangerous for health. According to the agency, these sanitisers contain dangerous levels of methanol, also known as wood alcohol, which is a toxic substance. If you use these sanitisers, you may experience nausea, nerve damage and blindness. It can even cause death if ingested, warns the agency. Methanol can be absorbed in the body through your skin. This is particularly dangerous for children, who have a greater ratio of skin surface area to body weight as compared with adults. Also, since you apply hand sanitisers repeatedly, there is a higher chance of poisoning. Earlier, the FDA has issued a warning about nine tainted hand sanitizers.
There are 2 types of hand sanitizers in the market, alcohol-based and alcohol-free. To fight the COVID-19 pandemic, you need to use an alcohol-based sanitizer. This is most effective is getting rid of pathogens. It also works as a medical disinfectant. Alcohol-free sanitizer contain antiseptic properties that can help you get rid of microorganisms. These contain antimicrobial agents or benzalkonium chloride. But these are not as effective as the former.
The FDA has warned that hand sanitisers that list ethanol as one of the ingredients have later tested positive for methanol contamination. Unfortunately, it is not easy to tell if a product contains methanol. You can try sniffing the product to see if it has a synthetic or chemical odour. But how many people can smell out methanol?
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage on unabated, there is a chance that we see many new hand sanitisers in the market. So, it becomes necessary to know if you are at risk of methanol exposure. But how do you know the signs?
Methanol is a toxic agent and it affects the liver initially. This organ converts methanol into formaldehyde, which then gets converted to formic acid. The build-up of formic acid drives down the pH of the blood. This makes your blood very acidic and this disrupts the metabolic processes required for cells to produce energy. As a result, there is a build-up of waste products in the body. This affects the nerve cells. Your retina and optic nerve cells are the worst hit and may even suffer permanent damage. Usually symptoms of methanol poisoning appear about four to six hours after exposure. Usual symptoms are vision loss, nausea, vomiting, headache, seizures or coma. The initial symptoms may be lightheadedness and sometimes rapid breathing. If left untreated, it can lead to blindness.
