What do you normally use, plain soap or antibacterial soap?

According to a comprehensive analysis from University of Michigan, antibacterial soaps are no more effective than plain soaps in preventing infectious diseases.

Mainly because antibacterial soaps are sold in formulations that aren't as effective as what we would normally hope.

Morever, the main ingredient in most antibacterial soaps - triclosan - may react in cells in a way that some becteria will become resistant to commonly used antibacterial drugs such as amoxicillin.

According to Allison Aiello of the U-M School of Public Health and her team:

"These changes have not been detected at the population level, but e-coli bacteria bugs adapted in lab experiments showed resistance when exposed to as much as 0.1 percent wt/vol triclosan soap.

What we are saying is that these e-coli could survive in the concentrations that we use in our (consumer formulated) antibacterial soaps. What it means for consumers is that we need to be aware of what's in the products.

The soaps containing triclosan used in the community setting are no more effective than plain soap at preventing infectious illness symptoms, as well as reducing bacteria on the hands."

Shocks! And I often buy antibacterial versions of plain soaps which are very common in our local market.

Anyways, findings appear in the August edition of Clinical Infectious Diseases in an article entitled "Consumer Antibacterial Soaps: Effective or Just Risky":

The team looked at 27 studies conducted between 1980 and 2006, and found that soaps containing triclosan within the range of concentrations commonly used in the community setting (0.1 to 0.45 percent wt/vol) were no more effective than plain soaps.

Triclosan is used in higher concentrations in hospitals and other clinical settings, and may be more effective at reducing illness and bacteria.

What about you, what do you think of antibacterial soaps?

Source: University of Michigan