It is common that it is unsafe to use the bowl soap, because pathogens that got there with previous use remain on its surface. We decided to check if such fear is justified.

From use Kuskoye soap warn sites hospitals And Polyclinicas well as municipal resources. The official website of the television program "Live Great" with Elena Malysheva reports: “Microbes - sources of infections are preserved on the lump soap. Moreover, those microbes that live on antibacterial soap are very stable. Only one replacement of solid soap with liquid reduced the occurrence of infections in hospitals ten times. ” The portal "So great", the official resource of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, also warnsthat it is better to use liquid soap, since "mud can remain on a lump." Health resources They tellthat “some of the microbes considered in the soap may include bacteria: intestinal stick, salmonella and shigella - and viruses, such as novirus, rotavirus and staphylococcus (in fact, this is also a bacterium. - approx. Ed.)”. Russian -speaking "Wikipedia" in the article "Washing hands" also warns: "A solid -lump soap can preserve bacteria left from previous use on its surface."

Bacteria surround us everywhere, they are not only in places that seem to us polluted. Total on the planet There is at least 5*10³⁰ bacteria, their biomass exceeds the total biomass of all animals and plants. Scientists inclined The fact that in a healthy human body microorganisms is even more than cells of the body itself. On each square centimeter of the skin It lives About 10 million bacteria. Most of them are not dangerous-they apply either to nonpathogenic (that is, they do not cause a disease, but can, on the contrary, protect the body), or to conditionally pathogenic (natural inhabitants of the body, cause diseases only with a decrease in immunity). By data Research agencies and the quality assessment of US medical care, less than 1% of all bacteria existing in the world can cause some kind of disease, the rest are useful to the body-they help to digest food, kill dangerous microorganisms and participate in the synthesis of the necessary vitamins. Microbiologist John Hinz Explains: “When you wash your hands, you are not trying to get rid of all bacteria. You are simply trying to reduce the number of [dangerous] bacteria to give your immune system a chance to fight. ”

Specialists of the University of Georgetown (USA) investigated 14 pieces of soap, which was used in private houses. The largest number of microbes was found on those pieces that were more often used and which remained moist between use. There were fewer bacteria on those that managed to dry. Mostly microorganisms were represented by colonies of conditionally pathogenic saprophytic Staphylococcus and various families of enterobacteria. Saprophytic staphylococcus most often lives in the genitals and urethra, with a decrease in immunity, it causes cystitis and urethritis. And enterobacteria, on the one hand, They make up A significant part of the normal intestinal microflora, on the other hand, some representatives of this group, such as E. coli (E. coli), salmonella, Jersinia (plague wand) or shigella are dangerous for humans. That is, if we assume that these pieces of soap were most often used specifically to clean the skin of the hands after using the restroom, then the bacteria that live in the urinary tract and the intestines were logically the most common on soap.

Indian scientists decided To explore the pieces of soap not in ordinary houses, but in healthcare institutions, namely, in 18 dental clinics. All 32 samples that they studied contained microorganisms on their surface:

Epidermal staphylococcus was found 100% of the studied samples (as can be seen from the name, It lives on the skin of people and does not pose any danger if it does not enter the blood to people with weakened immunity);
87% of the studied pieces contained Klebsiella - most strains Relate to the normal microflora of the intestine, some are dangerous and can cause pneumonia, infect the urogenital paths, vagina, the uterus, and also be the cause of acute intestinal infections;
78% had E. coli on their surface (most intestinal strains Behindbut some can cause severe food poisoning);
56% contained staphylococcus lemon-yellow, another 19%-golden; Both types belong to pathogenic microorganisms and cause dangerous diseases (meningitis, pneumonia, endocarditis and sepsis).

The researchers also found two types of fungi, which are primarily dangerous for people with weakened immunity, as well as two more types of bacteria, one of which is characteristic of the colon microflora, and the second for the skin surface.

However, there is no reason to throw the bowl soap and buy liquid. The authors of both studies only studied what bacteria are on the surface of soap. Can they infect a person who wash his hands with such a piece is another question. Answer to it back in 1988 tried Find specialists from Dial, a large manufacturer of hygiene products, who also introduced the world's first antibacterial soap. They took the bowl soap, moistened it with water to a small softening to simulate the conditions when they often wash their hands with the same piece, and then treated the samples with colonies of two bacteria (intestinal and blue -skinned sticks) in concentration, 70 times higher than the discovered scientists in really used samples. Then 16 volunteers were offered to wash their hands with this polluted soap. After washing their brush, they studied for the presence of bacteria - it turned out that even seriously high concentration did not leave harmful microorganisms on them.

Similar results showed another, earlier studyconducted by Procter & Gamble specialists. Instead of a pungent stick, scientists then used another pathogenic bacterium - a golden staphylococcus, as well as the already mentioned E. coli. After washing the pathogenic bacteria, polluted with soap, was not left. Elizabeth KO, senior biology teacher at Boston University (USA), Explains This is the fact that all pathogenic microorganisms during foaming the soap pass from the surface of the piece to the formed foam, and then leave their hands with it when washing off with water. Tatyana Petukhova, Doctor of Medicine, Dermatologist at the Weill Cornell Medicine and Newyork-Pressbyterian, Medical Centers. Adds: If your immunity is so reduced that bacteria from the skin are able to harm the body, it is more likely that you will suffer from your own skin flora, which will bring something from a piece of soap. Philip Tirno, clinical professor of microbiology and pathology, Summarizes: “Even if several people use a piece of soap, the stars should be perfectly converged so that you get sick. For example, if you transferred the pathogen from the surface of the soap on your hands, but at the same time you did not wash them carefully and did not wash the pathogen, and then immediately ate something with these hands or licked your fingers, then in theory you have a chance to get sick. ” Dermatologist Whitney Bow in a commentary for National Public Radio Confirmedthat in his practice I have never met a single patient who was infected with something from washing his hands with aiper soap.

Moreover, the gas soap effectively protects not only from bacteria, but also from viruses, showed Joint American-Canadian study. As test microorganisms, the same Escherichia stick was used, as well as a laboratory prepared virus that imitates Ebola, but not causing its symptoms. Scientists invited 18 volunteers, treated them with a solution containing pathogens, and then asked to wash their hands in one of three ways: soap, disinfectant solution or water with chlorine. The wash of the hands with soap from the point of view of removing pathogens from the surface of intact skin showed the result comparable to disinfection and rinsing with chlorine.

Memo on the wash of the hands, prepared by experts of centers for the control and prevention of US diseases, reportsthat both the lump and liquid soap are equally effective - there is no difference which of them you will wash your hands. This assessment Confirm And specialists from the Canadian University of McGill, emphasizing that liquid soap at the same time causes much more damage to the ecology: a carbon trace of its production is about 25% more than the lump, the consumption is usually higher, and it is usually sold in a plastic container, which is not always subject to processing.

Thus, although many types of bacteria on the bow of soap really remain after use, they are effectively washed off with water after the next piece that uses this piece soaps and creates a foam. No experience showed the probability of transferring bacteria to the hands of a piece of soap, even pre -processed by a large number of microorganisms.

Image on the cover: Bild von 422737 Auf Pixabay