Kill Germs Without Putting Your Family at Risk

When you disinfect, you’re trying to protect your family from health problems, not cause them health problems! But national brand disinfectants use harsh, toxic chemicals. So is it better to avoid disinfectants altogether? Not if a safer, equally effective solution exists. And it does in Melaleuca’s Sol-U-Guard Botanical® Disinfectant.

The Danger Is Real, and It’s Everywhere

There are four words moms dread hearing every winter: cold and flu season. As if that weren’t enough, this year the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) is stirring its own kind of anxiety and unease.

Recent
studies from several major universities
confirm that your TV remote control is the single dirtiest item in a typical
home! Mobile devices have about 25,127 bacteria per square inch. Computer
keyboards have about 3,000. And the average computer mouse has 1,600. Are you
surprised by any of these bacteria-per-square-inch examples? Wait. It gets
worse.

In the kitchen, your sink drain is literally crawling with an average of 567,845 germs per square inch! The kitchen sink faucet is home to an alarming 13,227! Countertops average 488. Refrigerator handles: 318. And microwave buttons: 214. In the bathroom, toilets can be culprits with 295 germs per square inch on the average toilet seat, but they’re far from the seediest. Your shower drain houses an average of 119,468 per square inch! The sink drain: 17,694. And the faucet handle: 6,267. And these are just a few examples of the countless places germs lurk.

Viruses and bacteria are particularly adept at using human hosts to spread their kind, but there are preventive measures that go a long way towards protecting you and your family.

Along with thoroughly washing and sanitizing hands, disinfecting key areas of your home is important for making your home safe. Especially during cold and flu season.

But have you ever stopped to consider
how those germs are being killed? Or if there are unintended and undesirable side
effects that come along with using national brand disinfectants?

Fighting Fire with Fire

Germs, including bacteria and viruses, are living creatures. When you disinfect, you are killing them, which generally requires something extreme: something very hot, very harmful, or very toxic.

Guess how national brand disinfectants kill germs? With harsh, life-interrupting chemicals. Poison. The active ingredients: chlorine bleach or quaternary ammonium compounds. These aren’t simply soapy cleaners—even though some moms use them as such.

Disinfectant wipes in particular are often misused because they are misunderstood. It’s no wonder. The packaging for some wipes is deceptive. Containers with wipes that pull out of the top are very similar to far more mild wet wipes. National brand disinfectant wipes aren’t simply “powerful baby wipes.” They’re saturated with dangerous chemical pesticides.

So what is the true harm in slathering these disinfectants everywhere—all in the name of making your home safer?

Well, you usually don’t have to look much farther than the back label to see the dangers. Warnings and cautions that few parents bother to spend time to read, let alone follow. According to Dawn Gouge, PhD, a University of Arizona public health entomologist, wipes containing quaternary disinfectants may be of particular concern for children because there is wide perception that they are safe for children. These products are widely marketed to parents and teachers and are seen as a reasonable—if not required—safety item in most classrooms. But because of their dangers, using them around young children with developing lungs is probably the last place products like these should be used.

A Risk for Everyone—Especially Kids

As early as 2005, researchers with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention along with other scientists published an article in The Journal of the American Medical Association implicating disinfectants containing chlorine or quaternary disinfectants with 830 of 2,593 pesticide-related illnesses in US school children. These included eye irritations, skin injuries, and upper respiratory irritation.

For many, this came as little surprise. Both chlorine bleach and quaternary disinfectants are well-known triggers for asthma. Especially for children. In a 2019 analysis of the EPA Pesticide Product Labeling System, among other studies, published in the American Journal of Infection Control, even adults who regularly use disinfectants and cleaners in their professional functions saw higher rates of asthma.

This echoes a landmark 20-year study published in 2018 that proved using cleaning products containing chlorine bleach and quaternary disinfectants as little as once a week was as damaging to lungs as smoking a pack of cigarettes a day for 20 years! The effects include a serious reduction in lung capacity, permanent lung damage, irritated airways and inflammation, and the aggravation of asthma. Plus, both chlorine bleach and quaternary disinfectants irritate the skin and eyes, and they build up on surfaces like kitchen countertops, continuously emitting noxious fumes. Remember, you’re trying to protect your family from health problems, not cause them health problems!

So is it better to avoid disinfectants altogether?

Not if a safer, equally effective solution exists. And it does in Melaleuca’s Sol-U-Guard Botanical Disinfectant.

The World’s First EPA-Registered Botanical Disinfectant

First introduced in 2005, this unique, highly effective and safe solution is specifically formulated to kill 99.9% of germs on all hard, nonporous surfaces. But instead of using chemicals with life-altering side effects, this EPA-registered botanical disinfectant is powered by citric acid—like that found in citrus fruit like oranges and lemons—and thyme oil. There is nothing more effective than putting the power of nature to work!

Without all of the unintended consequences of national brand disinfectants, you’ll want to disinfect far more than once a week—you’ll want to disinfect every day. Especially during cold and flu season. Why? Because a single bacterium cell can multiply into a billion bacteria cells in just 24 hours! And because every day your family brings home more bacteria from the germ-ridden outside world.

How Does Sol-U-Guard Botanical Work?

Its unique, botanical formula disrupts
and damages the functions of the germ and bacteria cells, causing them to die—without
the side effects connected with national brand disinfectants. That’s the power
of citric acid and thyme oil.

Master gardeners know that the herb
thyme is well regarded for its ability to stave off the diseases that may
affect other plants. In fact, its presence can benefit the entire garden. Its
secret? An essential oil that flows through the plant’s inner structure called
thymol. Thymol is a natural antimicrobial long renowned for its disinfecting
properties.

Together with citric acid, thymol makes Sol-U-Guard Botanical a more gentle option for disinfecting throughout your home—even on items and in spaces frequented by children. Sol-U-Guard Botanical does not leave a toxic residue. It doesn’t produce harmful vapors that can be inhaled. It’s perfect for children’s toys, video game controllers, school supplies, remote controls, light switches, doorknobs, bathroom surfaces, countertops, and anywhere else that disinfecting would provide more safety for your family.

Sol-U-Guard Botanical is available at Melaleuca.com in a 2x concentrated sprayable solution and in pre-moistened, biodegradable convenience wipes.

Where Do You Use It?

On hard, nonporous surfaces your
family touches frequently.

There are so many places in your home that need the germ-killing action of Sol-U-Guard Botanical! Consider these frequently touched items: In your home—light switches, doorknobs, handles on dressers, and cabinets. In your car—steering wheel, dashboard, shift handle, and door panels. And in your office, brace yourself—the average office desk has 400 times more bacteria than your toilet does!

How Do You Use Sol-U-Guard Botanical?

Just spray it on any hard, non-porous
surface that may be harboring germs and let it dry. Within minutes it will kill
99.9% of the germs and bacteria on that surface. It’s that simple.

A Helping Hand

Since germs are everywhere, Melaleuca also offers Clear Defense® Soothing Hand Sanitizer. It kills 99.99% of germs and bacteria with naturally derived, germ-killing alcohol and conditioning T36-C5® Melaleuca Oil while keeping your hands soft and smooth with a combination of plant-based ingredients, aloe vera, jojoba oil and glycerin. It also comes in travel-size bottles and in Clear Defense Moisturizing Hand Sanitizing Wipes made from biodegradable wood pulp, which makes them better for the environment.

Effectiveness and Safety—Together in One

As your personal online wellness store, Melaleuca is always open and ready to support your commitment to health. Sol-U-Guard Botanical Disinfectant and Clear Defense are two great, effective, safe solutions to help keep your family safer from germs and bacteria year-round, especially during the dreaded cold and flu season.

Sources:

Downey, Andrea. “Here's How Many Germs Are Lurking in Your Bathroom—And You'll Never Guess How Many Are on Your Toothbrush.” The Sun, 7 Apr. 2017, www.thesun.co.uk/living/3272186/this-is-how-many-germs-are-lurking-in-your-bathroom-and-youll-be-horrified-at-the-dirtiest-spot/.

Hitti, Miranda. “Top Spots for Bacteria at Home.” WebMD, 25 June 2007, www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/news/20070625/top-spots-for-bacteria-at-home#1.

Roberts, Catherine. “Why Parents Should Be Cautious When Using Household Disinfectants.” Consumer Reports, 5 Feb. 2020, www.consumerreports.org/cleaning/when-using-household-disinfectants-parents-should-be-cautious/.

Smith, Sandy. StackPath, 20 Aug. 2014, www.ehstoday.com/health/article/21916476/germs-in-the-office-do-you-know-where-your-phone-has-been-infographic.

Svanes, Øistein, et al. “Cleaning at Home and at Work in Relation to Lung Function Decline and Airway Obstruction.” American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, vol. 197, no. 9, Feb. 2018, pp. 1157–1163., doi:10.1164/rccm.201706-1311oc.