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Listen, no judgment here, we’ve all been there-you’re in a situation where something is on you or your kid’s skin and the only thing you have available to wipe it off are those disinfecting wipes. Should you?
You are viewing: Do You Need To Wear Gloves When Using Clorox Wipes
Disinfecting wipes made for cleaning are unsafe for cleaning human skin and can lead to skin irritation and minor chemical burns. If you either use disinfecting wipes without gloves or if you use them to clean your skin, it’s recommended to wash your skin immediately with soap and water.
That’s the official answer, but there’s more to it than that. Let’s dig into what happens if you let Clorox disinfecting wipes touch your skin.
Before I jump in I wanted to quickly mention that people often call Clorox Disinfecting Wipes “Clorox Bleach Wipes”, even though there is no bleach in the Clorox disinfecting wipes that everyone uses.
Are Clorox Disinfecting Wipes Safe For Your Skin?
Clorox disinfecting wipes or any other disinfecting wipes that use QACs as their active ingredient are not safe for your skin, and they are not to be used for cleaning your body.
Not for cleaning or sanitizing skin. Do not use as a diaper wipe or for personal cleansing.
Clorox Disinfecting Wipes Label
If you’re using a couple of Clorox disinfecting wipes for a project without gloves, then probably nothing too serious will happen.
However, you may experience these symptoms after extended use or if you have sensitive skin, you might experience these symptoms:
- Skin Dryness
- Skin irritation (chemical burn from NIH)
To be honest: I never wear gloves when I use Clorox disinfecting wipes, and I’ve never had any skin irritation but I have experienced skin dryness from bigger projects using Clorox disinfecting wipes.
As far as washing skin, I’ve personally done this in a pinch, and when I could, I cleaned it off with soap and water. If you’re in a situation where you can’t get to your sink without leaving a sticky mess, you can wash it off with the wipe and then get to a sink with soap and water to wash it off, immediately.
Do You Need Gloves For Clorox Disinfecting Wipes?
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The instructions for use for Clorox Disinfecting Wipes do not mention gloves, even though the label also says to not wash your skin with them.
Most people, (about 70%) do not wear gloves when using Clorox disinfecting wipes.
I asked 45 other cleaning enthusiasts and 71% of them never wear gloves (including me).
Does this mean that you won’t have any issues? Well, not necessarily.
Although I haven’t had this experience, I know some that get a kind of rash if they clean for too long with disinfecting wipes without gloves.
The point is that you need to be aware of your own hands and if you experience any skin irritation or skin dryness then you should consider wearing gloves.
You should be fine without using gloves, just make sure to wash your hands with soap and water after using.
Are Clorox Disinfecting Wipes Safe To Use in General?
If the instructions are followed completely, disinfecting wipes are generally safe to use.
However, the instructions are often not followed, and there are some potential side effects that are not well understood by research, yet.
Instructions that people often miss With Clorox Disinfecting Wipes:
- Apply the Clorox disinfecting wipe until visibly wet and wait for the surface to completely dry before continuing rinsing and using
- Wash your hands with soap and water after using
- After disinfecting any food-surface, rinse the surface with water
- Rinse toys with clean, potable water after disinfecting
- Causes moderate eye irritation, avoid contact with eyes or clothing
Here’s the big takeaway for me after doing research on this: Clorox Disinfecting Wipes shouldn’t be used for things we eat on without rinsing. Make sure and rinse the surface after disinfecting.
Ingredients For Disinfecting Wipes
Are Clorox disinfecting wipes safe? Well, to fully answer this question we need to look at the ingredients for disinfecting wipes.
Here are some of the more common active ingredients (non-bleach):
- N-Alkyl (C10, C12, C14) Dimethyl Ethyl Benzyl Ammonium Chloride
- Octyl Decyl Dimethyl Ammonium Chloride
- Dioctyl Dimethyl Ammonium Chloride
- Didecyl Dimethyl Ammonium Chloride
- Dimethyl Benzyl Ammonium Chloride
Are Clorox Disinfecting Wipes Ingredients Safe?
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These ingredients fall under the category of Quarternary Ammonium Compounds (QACs). This study shows a possible link to some blood problems with higher concentrations of QACs.
There are also several studies showing that QACs can impact reproductive health in mice.
Lastly, the AOEC lists these ingredients as particles that can affect those who have ashtma.
Are Clorox Wipes Safe For Food Surfaces?
The long and short of it is that Clorox Disinfecting Wipes are not safe and are not designed for food-contact surfaces. This is true for Clorox disinfecting wipes, or any other disinfecting wipe that uses QACs as their active ingredient. Any ingredient that ends with ammonium chloride, most likely.
In fact, on the label of Clorox Disinfecting Wipes, it says: “Use on hard, nonporous, non-food-contact surfaces around home, office and classroom!“
Later on it says: “This product is not for use on dishes, glassware, or eating utensils“
However, it does say that if the wipe comes in contact with food-surfaces, than a potable (drinkable) water rinse is required.
What’s A Safer Alternative To Clorox Disinfecting Wipes?
Clorox and many other companies are continually branching out into products that are not as toxic.
For example, Clorox makes Compostable Cleaning Wipes as an alternative to their disinfecting wipes.
In contrast, the active ingredients for Clorox Compostable Cleaning Wipes are:
- Ethanol (Alcohol)
- Capryl Glucoside
- Potassium Citrate
- Sodium Hydroxide
- Isopropanol
- Citric Acid
Clorox Disinfecting Wipes actually contains many of these ingredients, but they aren’t listed as “active”.
The trade-off is that the composting wipe’s disinfecting power is less, but if you’re looking for a quick clean where you don’t have to worry about toxicity, the composting wipes are a great choice.
Source: https://t-tees.com
Category: WHEN
