The Power of Bleach
It's the most widely available, affordable disinfectant on earth. And using it around the house could save your life. So why are so many Canadians still relegating it to the laundry room?
It's the most widely available, affordable disinfectant on earth. And using it around the house could save your life. So why are so many Canadians still relegating it to the laundry room?
Sure, it whitens whites. but bleach can do so much more than just your laundry, including kill the germs that cause the cold and flu. Along with getting the flu shot and washing your hands regularly and properly, using bleach around the house to disinfect common surfaces is one of the best things you can do to protect yourself and your family from seasonal viruses.
Cold and flu germs are persistent little buggers. rhinoviruses--the most prevalent type of cold virus--can live on surfaces for as long as three hours, while the flu virus boasts an even more impressive survival rate of up to 72 hours. in other words, they're everywhere, and it's up to you to stop them.
but cleaning alone isn't enough to get rid of them. Cleaning only removes dirt and stains; disinfecting kills germs and stops the spread of infection. that's where bleach comes in.
the concept is nothing new. indeed, household bleach has been used for generations as a disinfectant, gaining popularity in the late 19th century following French scientist Louis pasteur's discovery that sodium hypochlorite (the active ingredient in liquid bleach) is extremely effective in killing disease-causing bacteria.
What sets bleach apart is its ability to penetrate the tough outer shell of infectious microbes and attack the proteins essential for bacterial growth. Sodium hypochlorite causes those proteins to clump together, in effect, killing the bacteria.
bleach's disinfecting power is recognized around the globe. in fact, the world's leading public health agencies, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for disease Control and prevention (CdC), both recommend its household use on non-porous surfaces to help control the spread of illness.
Even when it's whitening your whites, bleach still works to reduce your risk of disease. One US study from the National institute of Nursing research found that those who used bleach in their laundry had one-fourth the infection rate of those who did not.
So why isn't everyone using bleach to disinfect their homes? despite its obvious merits, bleach has gotten a bad rap of late. Many people falsely believe that the product is an environmental hazard.
The misunderstanding is largely a problem of semantics. Household bleach is often incorrectly referred to as chlorine bleach. As such, environmental concerns about chlorine are extended to the product. the truth is, although chlorine is used in its production, what's in the bottle is sodium hypochlorite. there is no free chlorine present in household bleach.
Bleach begins as salt and water and returns to the earth the same way; it is a sustainable cycle. Claims that it contaminates ground water are unfounded. during consumer use and disposal, approximately 95 to 98 per cent of household bleach is broken down into its component parts; the remaining two to five per cent is effectively treated by sewer or septic systems.
Nevertheless, household bleach is a powerful chemical and should be used around the home with care. it's a good idea to wear rubber gloves and, if you're sensitive to chemicals, a mask, when handling the product. to disinfect surfaces, first dilute bleach in water: Combine 60 millilitres (1/4 cup) bleach with 3.8 litres (1 gallon) H20. Make a fresh batch daily as bleach will start to break down quickly once it has been diluted. And remember, always allow bleach solution to sit on contaminated surfaces for 10 minutes before rinsing to ensure disinfection.
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Did You Know...
A single sneeze can send flu-infested water droplets as far as three feet.
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Information courtesy of the National Post for public health benefit. Feb.17, 2010
Cold and flu germs are persistent little buggers. rhinoviruses--the most prevalent type of cold virus--can live on surfaces for as long as three hours, while the flu virus boasts an even more impressive survival rate of up to 72 hours. in other words, they're everywhere, and it's up to you to stop them.
but cleaning alone isn't enough to get rid of them. Cleaning only removes dirt and stains; disinfecting kills germs and stops the spread of infection. that's where bleach comes in.
the concept is nothing new. indeed, household bleach has been used for generations as a disinfectant, gaining popularity in the late 19th century following French scientist Louis pasteur's discovery that sodium hypochlorite (the active ingredient in liquid bleach) is extremely effective in killing disease-causing bacteria.
What sets bleach apart is its ability to penetrate the tough outer shell of infectious microbes and attack the proteins essential for bacterial growth. Sodium hypochlorite causes those proteins to clump together, in effect, killing the bacteria.
bleach's disinfecting power is recognized around the globe. in fact, the world's leading public health agencies, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for disease Control and prevention (CdC), both recommend its household use on non-porous surfaces to help control the spread of illness.
Even when it's whitening your whites, bleach still works to reduce your risk of disease. One US study from the National institute of Nursing research found that those who used bleach in their laundry had one-fourth the infection rate of those who did not.
So why isn't everyone using bleach to disinfect their homes? despite its obvious merits, bleach has gotten a bad rap of late. Many people falsely believe that the product is an environmental hazard.
The misunderstanding is largely a problem of semantics. Household bleach is often incorrectly referred to as chlorine bleach. As such, environmental concerns about chlorine are extended to the product. the truth is, although chlorine is used in its production, what's in the bottle is sodium hypochlorite. there is no free chlorine present in household bleach.
Bleach begins as salt and water and returns to the earth the same way; it is a sustainable cycle. Claims that it contaminates ground water are unfounded. during consumer use and disposal, approximately 95 to 98 per cent of household bleach is broken down into its component parts; the remaining two to five per cent is effectively treated by sewer or septic systems.
Nevertheless, household bleach is a powerful chemical and should be used around the home with care. it's a good idea to wear rubber gloves and, if you're sensitive to chemicals, a mask, when handling the product. to disinfect surfaces, first dilute bleach in water: Combine 60 millilitres (1/4 cup) bleach with 3.8 litres (1 gallon) H20. Make a fresh batch daily as bleach will start to break down quickly once it has been diluted. And remember, always allow bleach solution to sit on contaminated surfaces for 10 minutes before rinsing to ensure disinfection.
---------
Did You Know...
A single sneeze can send flu-infested water droplets as far as three feet.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Information courtesy of the National Post for public health benefit. Feb.17, 2010
