I believe that there are always such people around you: when you go to a restaurant to eat, you have to use boiling water to wash the dishes and chopsticks, if you don't want to wash your hands, wipe them with wet wipes or hand sanitizer, wipe your children's toys with alcohol every few days, and regularly disinfect your family's underwear and underwear with detergent and baking soda......
Are these commonly used disinfection methods reassuring or just a psychological comfort?
caution
Cleaning≠ Disinfection ≠ Sterilization
△ Cleaning: It is the process of removing organic matter, inorganic matter and visible pollutants on the surface of the object, that is, washing the dirty things that can be seen. For example, washing off the rice grains and oil spots on the child's clothes is generally only the level of cleaning. Cleaning only removes a large portion of the bacteria, but it does not completely destroy them.
△ Disinfection: Disinfection is a little more advanced than cleaning, that is, it kills all bacteria, viruses, fungi and other harmful things except spores. If it is considered to be clean when the residue on the bowl is rinsed with water, then it is disinfected at the stage of boiling in hot water. Commonly used disinfection methods include high-temperature disinfection, liquid chemical disinfection (such as alcohol, chlorine-containing disinfectants, glutaraldehyde, hydrogen peroxide, iodine, etc.), and gas chemical disinfection (such as ozone).
△ Sterilization: It is probably the highest level of "clean", strictly speaking, professional sterilization can kill all microorganisms on the item, and all bacteria and dirty things will be eliminated. Commonly used sterilization methods include high temperature sterilization (such as pressure steam sterilization, dry heat sterilization), chemical sterilization (such as ethylene oxide gas, low temperature formaldehyde steam, peracetic acid, etc.).
"Blanch the dishes and chopsticks with boiling water, and disinfect the dishes and chopsticks with a disinfection cabinet"
Can it be sterilized
Blanch dishes and chopsticks with boiling water
If it's really "hot," it's definitely useful! Bacteria and viruses are said to be "fierce," but they are really afraid of hot things. However, everyone's conventional practice is not to achieve the disinfection effect at all, because to achieve the disinfection effect, at least two conditions must be met at the same time: (1) the disinfected thing should be completely immersed in water, (2) heat and boil to 100 °C for at least 5 minutes. In comparison, it is not difficult to find that our daily so-called "boiling water scalding dishes and chopsticks" does not meet the above standards.
Use a sterilizer to disinfect the dishes and chopsticks
Some restaurants are equipped with sterilization cabinets, can this sterilize dishes and chopsticks? But pay attention to whether the disinfection cabinet in the restaurant is electrified, or whether the disinfection cabinet is also dirty.
To sum up, if you choose to eat out, don't worry too much about the disinfection of dishes and chopsticks, because the routine practice of "rinsing in boiling water" really doesn't make much sense, just clean it. If you really want to burn, try to pour the boiling water just out of the pot, and the scalding time should not be less than 5 minutes, although it cannot reach 100 °C, it can also kill most pathogenic microorganisms.
If you want to pay attention to the disinfection of dishes and chopsticks at home, it is also very simple, that is, put them in a pot and cook. Although boiling disinfection cannot reach the sterilization level of medical professionals, in daily life, after boiling disinfection kills most of the pathogenic microorganisms, some remaining stubborn elements will not directly enter our flesh and blood through daily necessities, and the harm to us is almost negligible.
The correct way to disinfect dishes and chopsticks
● Put the washed dishes and chopsticks into a clean pot, press all the dishes and chopsticks into clean water, then calculate the time from the boiling water and boil for 15 minutes. Although boiling to 100°C for 5 minutes can kill most bacteria, viruses, fungi and other pathogens, considering that some things, such as the corners of the tableware, may not be completely sterilized in 5 minutes, it is generally recommended to cook for 15 minutes more safely.
● Do not sterilize plastic dishes and chopsticks by boiling.
●In general, disinfection once a week is sufficient.
●If there are members of the household with weakened resistance, such as infants, pregnant women, and patients (especially those with infectious diseases), it is recommended to strengthen disinfection, and it is recommended to do it once a day.
"Wipe your hands with wipes and use hand sanitizer"
Can it be sterilized
Wipe your hands with a wet wipe
The use rate of wet wipes is really high! Children have dirty hands and need to touch one to wipe them, and when eating out and feel that the bowl is dirty, they should also touch one and wipe it. But everyone, do you pay attention to what kind of wipes you use when you usually use them? with or without disinfection function, with or without skin care function, and with or without fragrant smell?
At present, the wet wipes on the market are divided into three categories according to their use: the first type is ordinary wipes that only have a cleaning effect and cannot be disinfected, which is mainly used for cleaning and moisturizing the skin. The second type is sanitary wipes with antibacterial function, which can inhibit the growth of bacteria, but cannot reach the disinfection level, and are mostly used on the skin. The third category is disinfectant wipes, which can achieve the level of disinfection and are used to disinfect the skin or surface.
So, if you're away from home and you really don't have the conditions to wash your hands at the moment, it's okay to wipe your hands with cleaning wipes. But if you can wash your hands if you can, don't be lazy!
Use hand sanitizer
"Since there are many types of wet wipes, it is not easy to choose, and it is not stable to wipe my hands, so can I use hand sanitizer?"
Hand sanitizer sold on the market now refers to hand sanitizer that can replace running water for rinsing, containing sterilization (alcohol-based) and skin care ingredients, which can be volatilized quickly, so it is also called quick-drying hand sanitizer, which is often used in hospitals, banks, supermarkets, airports and other public places. However, due to the irritation of the disinfectant ingredients in it, it may still cause allergic skin reactions despite the skin care ingredients, and the quick-drying hand sanitizer is flammable, so it is very unsafe to give it to children alone.
In addition, although hand sanitizer can achieve the effect of disinfection, the mud and paint that children play with are still stuck to their hands, and rubbing them may not make these disappear completely, which is a typical example of eliminating poison but not cleaning! Therefore, in daily life, especially for children who often get their hands dirty, it is not recommended to replace hand washing with hand sanitizer.
"Rubbing children's toys with alcohol"
Can it be sterilized
Young children like to stuff toys into their mouths to gnaw, parents who love to be clean can't stand it, there are a lot of bacteria on the toys, and the disease enters from the mouth!
Alcohol is ethanol, which is a disinfectant that can achieve the level of disinfection, and clinically commonly used alcohol with a concentration of 70%~80% to disinfect skin and objects. However, alcohol is also irritating, especially harmful to children, and can easily cause dermatitis. It is not recommended to use alcohol to wipe and disinfect in daily life, especially edible alcohol containing a variety of additives, let alone wipe children's toys.
Proper way to disinfect toys
Toys that are resistant to humidity and heat can be sterilized with steam, toys that are not resistant to heat can be wiped with disinfectant wipes and then rinsed with water before drying, and fur and cotton toys can be washed and exposed to the sun.
If your child is generally healthy, toys don't have to be sanitized every time they play with them, just keep them clean after use. Exposure to common natural bacteria in life can help children build a sound microbiome and improve their resistance.
"Wash underwear with detergent and baking soda"
Can it be sterilized
△ Detergent: The main ingredient of commercially available detergent is chlorine-containing oxidant, which has comprehensive effects such as disinfection, bleaching and washing, but it has certain irritation and corrosiveness to the skin, and if it is not cleaned, it may cause damage to the skin, especially the delicate parts protected by underwear and underwear. Therefore, it is not recommended to use cleansing to wash underwear and underwear daily.
△ Baking soda: Baking soda is sodium bicarbonate, dissolved in water, weakly alkaline, but not a disinfectant, and has no bactericidal effect. It's just that most bacteria live in an acidic environment, and the weak alkalinity of baking soda can inhibit the growth of these bacteria to a certain extent, so it can only be said that it has a certain antibacterial effect, but it cannot kill bacteria. Moreover, baking soda also has a certain irritation to the skin and mucous membranes, and it becomes sodium carbonate when heated to 50 °C, which is more irritating and corrosive, and cannot be used casually.
In fact, although underwear and underwear are close to the skin, they do not need to be strictly disinfected every time, just wash and dry.
caution
Daily disinfection standards
Whatever it is for daily use, it is most important to keep it clean and disinfect it when necessary. Because there are permanent bacteria in the human skin and mucous membranes, many of which are also beneficial to the human body, a small number of common bacteria can also help the human body form a normal microbiosphere and improve resistance. If you live in a strictly sterile environment all the time, your body's resistance will become weaker and weaker!