Last year Americans were told that one of the ways to prevent being infected with Covid-19 is to wash hands frequently and for at least 20 seconds, and if that was not possible, use hand sanitizer.  That resulted in a run on hand sanitizers and for awhile they were difficult to find.

Because of the huge demand various brands of sanitizers started appearing in stores that we had not seen before.  Then we were alerted that some of those that were made in Mexico contained methanol, a form of alcohol that’s poisonous to humans, and we should not use them.

Now, another warning has been issued that some sanitizers made in both the U.S. and China contain benzene, a chemical known to cause blood cancers such as leukemias.

Hand sanitizer brands with bottles testing for the highest levels of benzene are:

This does not mean you should stop using hand sanitizers when you cannot thoroughly wash your hands.  It just means you would be wise to throw out any of the above listed hand sanitizers if you have them.

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