COVID-19 PREVENTION
When it comes to preventing the spread of infectious diseases like COVID-19, nothing beats good old-fashioned hand washing.
But if water and soap aren’t available, your next best option, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is to use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
All it takes is two ingredients (three if you want to add essential oils for a scented sanitizer) to make your own hand sanitizer at home.
What ingredients do you need?
Making your own hand sanitizer is easy to do and only requires a few ingredients:
- Isopropyl or rubbing alcohol (99 percent alcohol volume)
- Aloe vera gel like Aloe Max 100
- Option: Essential Oils
The key to making an effective, germ-busting hand sanitizer is to stick to a 2:1 proportion of alcohol to aloe vera. This keeps the alcohol content around 60 percent. This is the minimum amount needed to kill most germs, according to the CDC
Hand sanitizer Recipe:
- 2 parts isopropyl or rubbing alcohol (99 percent)
- 1 parts aloe vera gel (to help keep your hands smooth and to counteract the harshness of alcohol) Aloe Max 100
- Option: 10 drops of essential oil
Directions:
- Pour all ingredients into a bowl, ideally one with a pouring spout like a glass measuring container.
- Mix with a spoon and then beat with a whisk to turn the sanitizer into a gel.
- Pour the ingredients into an empty bottle for easy use, and label it “hand sanitizer.”
Hand sanitizer is a handy on-the-go way to help prevent the spread of germs when soap and water isn’t available. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers can help keep you safe and reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus.
