logo
ADVERTISEMENT

Many hand-sanitisers during Covid pandemic were bogus – Kemri tests

Many had more water than alcohol, and performed dismally when tested against germs.

image
by The Star

Health23 March 2023 - 11:09
ADVERTISEMENT

In Summary


•The tests were done by researchers at the Kenya Medical Research Institute and the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology.

•There was also widespread adulteration with 20 per cent of the pandemic samples illegally substituting alcohol with methanol.

Ushers at a church in Kisumu sprinkles hand sanitizer to faithfuls on March 15, 2020.

Remember how people were frenetically sanitising their hands during the Covid-19 pandemic? Or should have been?

It turns out that most of the hand sanitisers sold in Kenya during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021 were substandard and probably could not kill the virus, tests have shown.

Many of them had too much water mixed with only a little alcohol. Some even used methanol and could have been dangerous. 

Of all brands made during the pandemic, only two or three out of every 10 had the minimum 60 per cent alcohol content.

The tests were done by researchers at the Kenya Medical Research Institute and the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology.

They tested 35 brands made between March 2020 and August 2021, and 55 unexpired brands manufactured before March 2020.

Most of the pandemic-era sanitisers were substandard.

Sanitisers are basically made with alcohol mixed with water and gels like glycerin to prevent drying out users’ skin. The product is sold in bottles under brand names.

But they should contain 60 per cent to 95 per cent alcohol to be able to kill the virus that causes Covid-19.

“Numerous studies have demonstrated that formulations containing 60 to 95 per cent alcohol alone lower bacterial counts on the skin immediately post-scrub more effectively than do other agents. The same has been confirmed in our Kemri laboratories during research activities,” Samuel Wafula, the lead researcher from the Kemri, told the Star.

The Kenyan sanitisers also performed dismally against pathogens.

“None of the samples manufactured during the pandemic period had efficacy performance above 3 log reduction,” the researchers said. They presented the findings at the recently-ended 13th Kemri Annual Research and Health (Kash) Conference.

 ‘Log Reductions’ convey how effective a product is at reducing germs. The greater the log reduction the more effective the product is.

Wafula said Log reductions values are measured between one and six, with six being the best in reducing microbial load.

The other co-authors of the paper are James Kimotho of Kemri and Florence Ng’onga of JKUAT.

They said the unregulated making of sanitisers grew in Kenya when the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a pandemic and recommended the use of alcohol-based hand sanitisers to curb transmission.

“This led to an upsurge in their production and use that posed a danger of production and use of poor-quality alcohol-based hand sanitisers as well as increased availability of counterfeit products,” their study notes.

Sanitisers made before the pandemic were of better quality.

It was observed that 27.8 per cent of the peri-pandemic sanitisers had less than 90 per cent bactericidal reduction activity as compared to 12.5 per cent manufactured pre-pandemic,” they reported.

Wafula explained that antimicrobial efficacy performance of less than 90 per cent is dismal.

“This is considered ineffective in infection control hence the product has got no significant bactericidal activity,” he said.

There was also widespread adulteration with 20 per cent of the pandemic samples illegally substituting alcohol with methanol.

Methanol can be toxic when absorbed through the skin and can be life-threatening when ingested.  

“Substantial methanol exposure can lead to adverse health effects such as metabolic acidosis, neurologic sequelae, nausea, vomiting, headache, blurred vision, permanent blindness, seizures, coma, permanent damage to the nervous system or death and even death in severe cases,” Wafula said.

The authors said poor-quality sanitisers could lead to the emergence of alcohol-resistant strains of microorganisms.

Wafula also said hand washing with soap and water is the most effective hand hygiene practice, better than the use of sanitisers.

(Edited by V.Graham)

Love Health? Stay Connected!

Be part of an exclusive group of enthusiasts! Get fresh content, expert advice and exciting updates in your inbox with our health newsletter.

ADVERTISEMENT

logo© The Star 2024. All rights reserved