"Washing Hands Versus Hand Sanitizer In Fighting The Flu"
One of the best ways to protect yourself against the flu is to clean your hands. So what works best, washing them or using hand sanitizer? With the worst flu on record in at least a decade and 53 child deaths across the country, experts are zeroing in on simply hygiene saying it can help curb the spread of the virus. "Frequent hand washing - not just, 'Kids, wash your hands before dinner,' - but wash your hands frequently during the day from touching things," said Peter Shearer, MD, assistant professor of emergency medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and medical director of the emergency department of the Mount Sinai Hospital. Hand washing and hand sanitizer are both ways to fight flu. When it comes to hand sanitizer, alcohol-based products work so much better because the alcohol breaks up the bacteria's proteins and kills them.
- Peter Shearer, MD, Assistant Professor, Emergency Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Medical Director, Emergency Department, The Mount Sinai Hospital