Stanford biochemist and founder of Kabana Skin Care warns of dangerous hand sanitizers amid school reopenings


FDA has now banned 135 hand sanitizer brands.

Many businesses that use industrial alcohol have naively made toxic hand sanitizers because they lack the necessary expertise. It’s created a consumer and regulatory nightmare given that hand sanitizers are in such high demand and tight supply.

“With children going back to school and hand sanitizers a commonplace necessity, choosing products that are safe is even more important. Consumers must understand they need to protect themselves and their children; FDA is presently overwhelmed with the influx of new products and are playing catchup, as demonstrated by the increasing number of banned products.” Says Erik Kreider, Chief Formulation Chemist at Kabana Skin Care and manufacturer of C19 Hand Sanitizer.

Schools will be using more and more PPE as they reopen. This has created a terrible situation since administrators don’t have the technical understanding to know what is safe. It’s crucial for hand sanitizer users to question the product they choose, and demand that brands use food grade ethanol, especially for children.

Erik continues, “Ensuring hand sanitizer ingredients are safe is not easy. Only qualified people should be in charge of product development and manufacturing because there are so many versions of industrial alcohol. Choosing the appropriate quality and purity demands chemical knowledge. The majority of these alcohols are not appropriate in products for human use because they contain poisonous chemicals like methanol, a potent neurotoxin.”

Dangerous products may have offensive odors and irritate or dry out skin even until it cracks and bleeds. According to the National Institutes of Health there’s no safe exposure level for methanol. Absorption can result in permanent blindness or death.

Children are often more susceptible to neurotoxic chemicals.

What you can do:

1. Look at ingredients – Ethanol is the active ingredient, it should not say ‘denatured’ which means it contains toxic chemicals

2. Minimum 60% ethanol based on volume (v/v %). 70% is better against viruses

3. NDC number present on the label

4. Purchase hand sanitizers from established companies that offer other personal care products

Kabana Skin Care expanded its personal care product line in March 2020 with C19, a neurotoxin-free, fragrance-free, 70% ethanol by volume (using 200 proof, 100% pure, food grade ethanol), NDC #73369-0009 hand sanitizer that exceeds the CDC recommendations and leaves your hands feeling silky smooth. C19 is made in the USA.

C19 Antimicrobial Hand Sanitizer is available at http://www.c19usa.com and http://www.kabanaskincare.com.

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