Protecting yourself from toxic hand sanitizers

After the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) flagged five brands of potentially dangerous hand sanitizers in June, the list of products that may be contaminated with methanol has skyrocketed to about 60 brands, which makes 135 varieties of sanitizer. Only one so far has been manufactured in the United States.

The products have all been recalled voluntarily or should be avoided because methanol can be toxic when absorbed through the skin, the FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) say.

The hand sanitizers are marketed under an assortment of names. So far, most have been produced in Mexico, FDA spokesman Jeremy Kahn said. The FDA issued its initial warning involving a handful of products in mid-June, but the list of products to avoid has grown longer every week after more products have been cited by the FDA or the companies themselves. The CDC on July 5 issued a health advisory that the products can cause illness, blindness or even death if absorbed or ingested. On July 7, the FDA also moved to block imports of some of the products.

Hand sanitizers are supposed to contain ethanol (also known as ethyl alcohol) or isopropanol (isopropyl alcohol) as active ingredients. But some have tested positive for methanol (known as wood alcohol), which can be toxic if it touches your skin. The FDA said last week its investigation is ongoing; other hand sanitizers could be added to the list of those to avoid. For now, the FDA is working with affected companies on voluntary recalls. In some cases, the products were manufactured at the same facility as contaminated sanitizer, possibly involving shared equipment. Until the probe is complete, the FDA recommends avoiding any sanitizers under the brand names listed at the bottom of the page.

The FDA is investigating whether the cases of contamination were accidental or intentional if, for example, a manufacturer used an inappropriate substitute for ethyl alcohol, Kahn said. “When we find out, we’ll share that,” he said.

With the dramatically increased use of hand sanitizers this year to combat COVID-19, the FDA is also concerned about hand sanitizers that don’t contain enough ethyl alcohol or isopropyl alcohol.

People should wash their hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds after coughing, sneezing, blowing your nose, using the restroom or coming in contact with possibly contaminated surfaces, as well as before eating or touching your face. When washing isn’t possible, the CDC recommends using hand sanitizer containing at least 60 percent ethanol/ ethyl alcohol.

The FDA and CDC also advise consumers to watch out for hand sanitizers that:

• Falsely claim they prevent the spread of viruses such as COVID-19 or can offer 24-hour protection.
• Are promoted as “FDA-approved.” The FDA hasn’t approved any hand sanitizers.
• Are packaged to look like candy or drinks, because that could lead to accidental ingestion.

The warnings follow numerous cases in New Mexico and Arizona last month among consumers who used contaminated products that later tested positive for methanol. At least four people died, one person became blind and others had various illnesses that required medical attention.

The CDC recommends people should:

• Get medical help if you believe you’ve used possibly contaminated hand sanitizer and are experiencing symptoms including headache, blurry or impaired vision, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, loss of coordination or confusion. You can contact Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222 or your doctor.
• Never ingest any hand sanitizer, no matter what kind of alcohol it contains.
• Make sure children can’t get unsupervised access to hand sanitizer.
• Never use sanitizer on pets or leave containers where pets can get them.
• Check any hand sanitizers you’re using or are considering buying against the FDA list. https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-updates-hand-sanitizers-methanol
• Safely discard any contaminated sanitizer. Don’t flush it or pour it down the drain.

Here’s a list of the hand sanitizers that the FDA says either contain methanol, are being recalled or were reportedly produced at the same facility as contaminated sanitizer. For now, the FDA recommends consumers avoid hand sanitizers from these companies or products with these names or these National Drug Code numbers. It’s important to note that hand sanitizers aren’t required to contain an NDC number, so consumers won’t find a number on every product, even if the FDA has listed it as a product to avoid for now.  This list is likely to grow.