A hand sanitizer holds properties to disinfect which can remove harmful microbial agents present on your hands and inhibits germs transmissions. Hand sanitizers are available in a wide variety of forms such as liquid, foam, and easy-flowing gel hand sanitizer formulations.
Maintaining hand hygiene is highly important as the germs present on the hands can spread to the face, mouth, eyes, nose, and other body parts on touching. So, when soap and water are not accessible or you don't have enough time to wash hands thoroughly, a sanitizer can be a convenient substitute to hand washing. Instant hand sanitizers are can quickly and effectively kill bacteria and most viruses present on your skin.
Foam Hand Sanitizer Composition
A foam hand sanitizer works by forming up a lather. Foam sanitizers have an active ingredient that is quaternary ammonium, Benzalkonium Chloride. Contrary to alcohol-based products, non-alcohol foam sanitizers generally have lower than 0.1% concentration of Benzalkonium. Yet they provide almost the same level of protection. Mainly water is the remaining content. It is also enhanced with skin moisturizers such as vitamin E and aloe extract. These are relatively non-toxic due to low concentrations of Benzalkonium and it is non-inflammable too.
Some instant foam hand sanitizers contain antiseptic and bio-certified ethanol, which is considered as an alternative to ethyl alcohol. Instant foam hand sanitizers remove germs without water.
Foam Hand Sanitizers vs Alcohol-Based Sanitizers
Let's discuss the benefits of foam hand sanitizers over alcohol-based gel sanitizers
Unlike a gel-based hand rub alcohol formulation, foam hand sanitizer doesn't slide off easily from the hands. Alcohol gel sanitizers sometimes almost liquify while applying on the hands. It is often difficult to manage its application without splashing.
Foam sanitizers have an easy application that creates bubbles that roll out on the skin rendering easy cleansing. Whereas, gel sanitizers simply create a coating over the hand, which requires a more intense effort to spread it all over the hands.
Foam hand sanitizers have a non-sticky feel on hands after application. Many conventional alcohol sanitizer gels contain polymer for thickening in them and other ingredients that can feel sticky after application
The Alcohol-based products to eliminate bacteria until the skin gets dried. Whereas, even after the solution has dried, benzalkonium based foam hand sanitizers provide protection for some period.
The revitalizing and bursting action of bubbles in foam hand sanitizer help to remove dirt and dead skin cells and effectively inhibit germs and bacteria. Whereas, the alcohol-based gel has a static state that provides germ protection but merely traps dirt and dead skin cells.
Effectiveness of Foam Hand Sanitizers
The effectiveness of foam hand sanitizers can be summed up as:
✔ A major benefit of instant foam hand sanitizer is that it gets hold on to the hands while applying it over.
✔ Instant foam hand sanitizer doesn't simply slide off from hands, unlike alcohol-based gel hand sanitizers.
✔ Foam hand sanitizer is quite easier to spread around the hands. The bubble in the lather formed by it covers the hands completely.
✔ They act quickly and effectively kill 99.99% of germs around 15 seconds.
✔ They are non-flammable, unlike alcohol-based sanitizers. Hence, reducing a severe risk.
Thus, foam hand sanitizers are also effective as alcohol-based gel sanitizers and even have some advantages over it. Your product selection simply depends on the individual choices and suitability of the product.