Unfortunately, a lot of people have been scammed into believing that the sanitiser they have is equipped to kill the Coronavirus. Unfortunately, about 23 Pakistani hand sanitisers do NOT meet the WHO standards for fighting Coronavirus.
On Friday, Minister for Science and Technology, Chaudhry Fawad Hussain shared a list of hand sanitisers that do NOT meet international standards. Fawad said Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority collected samples of 23 brands and after testing, it concluded that they are not in conformity with the quality benchmarks set by the World Health Organisation. As a result, the government has order for their immediate removal from the stores: “We have advised the health authorities to remove them from stores,” the minister said.
Dear all! As per PSQCA sample testing following 23 brands of Sanitizers are not in comformity with WHO standards, we have advised health departments to remove these brands from stores. pic.twitter.com/Aj5gbSgIsD
— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) April 3, 2020
Like all over the world, the outbreak of Coronavirus has lead to a surge in the demand for hand sanitisers. This led for the unfortunate opportunity for the production of sub standard hand sanitisers to make a quick buck. At a time like this, this is not only irresponsible and immoral, it could lead to some serious risks for the entire country.
Here is the complete list of hand sanitisers that are NOT effective against COVID-19:
What do you need in your hand sanitiser?
Simply because a hand sanitizer’s label says it “kills 99.99% of illness causing germs,” does not mean that the product will protect you against the novel coronavirus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends rubbing on hand sanitizers with at least 60% alcohol when you aren’t able to wash your hands. But 70% is the better concentration of alcohol needed to ward off the virus. However, washing hands in recommended over using hang sanitizers.
So either look for hand sanitizers that contain at least 60-70% alcohol or simply switch to washing your hands.