With the emergence of COVID-19, sanitation has become the order of the day. There has been a mad rush for sanitizers and most especially hand sanitizers to prevent the spread of viruses. Sale of hand sanitizers are skyrocketing and prices almost doubled. A record high of over 80% for the dollar sales of hand sanitizers was experienced in drug stores in 2020 as compared to last year (2021) and over 55% in multi outlets and convenience stores (1).
Did you know you can make your own home made natural hand sanitizer using oregano oil?
In this post, you will learn how to make a natural homemade hand sanitizer with the use of oregano oil with just water or a carrier oil.
Why a natural homemade hand sanitizer is important.
With the spread of the corona virus, hand sanitizers are essential for us as we go about our normal day to day activities and to limit the possibility of being infected. Viruses can be easily picked up from surfaces and objects through touching. And we can use the same hands to touch our nose, eyes and mouth even when we eat and interact with others.
Hand Sanitizers are important as they help to deter the spread of germs and viruses in busy environments like schools, offices and malls. Sanitizing our hands on a frequent basis is very important at this time and the way we should go about it is also very important.
Studies have proved that 1 out of 5 people don’t wash their hands regularly and of those who do wash their hands, upto 70% of them do so without soap. Providing a hand sanitizer makes it more likely that people will use it to kill the harmful viruses that plaque us today.
The unfortunate thing is…
A majority of hand sanitizers are filled with toxins like triclosan, parabens, and artificial fragrances. The Food and Drug Adminitration (FDA) also sent out a warning on 75 hand sanitizers consumers should avoid. It was discovered that these hand sanitizers were tainted with methanol (2). Methanol is also known as wood alcohol and can cause serious health issues like blindness and even death if ingested.
Many hand sanitizers are produced using chemicals which are not good for the health. They might not affect us right now but with a continuous long term usage might cause serious health issues in the future.
In order for the disinfectant or sanitizer to be effective due to COVID-19, it needs to have a higher content of ethanol. The common disadvantage of alcohol is that it evaporates from the skin and limits a long lasting effect. It can also make the skin dry and rough. Other brands began to add moisturizing ingredients to their products to reduce irritation and increase lasting effects.
Natures way is the best way.
Using natural compounds to produce a hand sanitizer can be a good option, won’t you agree? Natural chemicals can go a long way to get the job done and still leaves us healthy along the process. Many today will stand for a natural way of going about our health issues rather than using harmful chemicals which will solve one problem and ends up “igniting” another. It is also well known that the chemicals used in hand sanitizers create resistant bacteria and are also known to have hormonal and immunological effects.
Using Oregano oil as a natural homemade hand sanitizer.
Oregano oil is known to be one of natures most powerful remedy for numerous ailments. Oregano has been used to thousands of years and by ancient healers who discovered the outstanding health benefits of the oregano plant. Today oregano is used for many health conditions as it is antiviral, antifungal, anti-bacteria, anti-parasitic and anti-microbial.
The active ingredients of oregano, which are, carvacrol and thymol, makes oregano unique in dealing with viruses and bacteria. Oregano is well known to fight the flu and cold virus and even makes it possible to fight the COVID-19 virus.
With the anti-microbial and antiviral properties of oregano oil, the oil stands out as one of the best natural alternative for hand sanitizers. Research and studies have also point out the effectiveness of oregano essential oil as an antimicrobial additive to detergents used in washing hands and cleaning of food contact surfaces (3)(4).
Oregano oil can effectively kill bacteria and help the immune system fight viruses, fungi and parasites. The combination of oregano oil and coconut oil can be made into a natural hand sanitizer. Hand sanitizer users will like how it keeps their hands soft and smooth.
How to use oregano oil as a natural hand sanitizer.
There are numerous ways to enjoy the benefit of oregano oil as a natural hand sanitizer. Oregano oil can’t be used single handedly or all by itself as the oil is highly potent and needs to be diluted before use. Below are a number of ways you can use oregano oil as a natural homemade hand sanitizer;
- Oregano Oil and Water
A few drops of oregano oil and water can be used as simple homemade hand sanitizer. All you will need is your oregano oil, water and a spray bottle. You can mix about 6-9 drops of oregano oil in a 250 ml spray bottle and spray on hands to kill bacteria and viruses.
It is important to not oregano oil does not mix easily with water so there will be the need to shake thoroughly before use.
2. Oregano Oil with coconut oil as a carrier oil
Mixing oregano oil with coconut oil can be a great choice as coconut oil comes with a lot of its own health benefits and can perfectly moisturize the hands when used as a hand sanitizer alongside oregano oil. You can mix 10 drops of oregano oil with 2 table spoons of coconut oil and rub on the hands as your own hand sanitizer.
3. Oregano oil with vitamin E oil, aloe vera gel, and witch hazel.
Here is another good combination with oregano oil that can make a great hand sanitizer. All you need is a glass bottle with a pump, fill it up with about 8 oz of aloe vera gel as it will help to sooth the skin, 1/4 teaspoon of vitamin E oil which can act as a preservative, add a table spoon of hitch hazel and 30 drops of oregano oil.
2. Oregano oil with other essential oils
Using oregano oil with other essential oils with antimicrobial properties can make the hand sanitizer more potent. You can use eucalyptus, rosemary, clove and cinnamon essential oil at the same time. All you will need is a spray bottle, 6 oz of water, 1 teaspoon aloe vera gel, 2 drops each of eucalyptus, rosemary, clove and cinnamon essential oil, 5 drops of scented oil like lemon oil, or any other of your choice. And spray on the hands and rub gently.
Safety Concerns with Oregano Oil.
When using oregano oil as a hand sanitizer, it is important to note oregano oil is a hot oil and can burn. It is important to dilute oregano oil before use. You can never use undiluted oregano oil directly to the skin as it can burn and cause adverse reactions to the skin. Keep in mind to always use a carrier oil or water to dilute oregano oil. You can’t dilute oregano oil with another essential oil.
How to pick a good hand sanitizer if you can’t lay your hands on oregano oil.
If you can’t find oregano oil, you can use other essential oil with high antimicrobial properties. If you can’t lay your hands on any other essential oil, then you can look use the following tips to spot a good hand sanitizer in the market;
First of all, do a research on the top brands in the market and pick a brand you can trust and rely on. Also, read the labels of the hand sanitizers to make sure ethanol/ethyl alcohol or isopropyl/isopropanol are present and are their main or active ingredient.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends a specification of at least 60 percent ethanol and 70 percent isopropanol (5).
If you experience any adverse reactions, with a hand sanitizer, then stop using it as soon as possible. Also avoid the following;
- Hand sanitizers that have been tested and contains methanol, 1-propanol or labeled to contain these compounds.
- If it has been tested and contains microbial contaminations.
- Hand sanitizers that have been recalled by the distributor or the manufacturer.
- Hand sanitizers that are subpotent, which means, it has less than required amount of the active compounds like ethyl alcohol, isopropyl alcohol or benzalkonium chloride etc
- Produced in same facilities as products that have been tested and found to have or contain methanol (6).
Using hand sanitizers can be a great way to fight against viruses and to limit the likely hood of becoming infected especially with the corona virus as we go about our daily activities. It is very important to avoid toxic hand sanitizers that will only put us in harms way and use natural alternatives for a better experience. When using oregano oil, it is important to go for 100% therapeutic grade oregano oils and produced by the top brands in the industry.
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