Antibacterial Soap
I think it must have seemed like a good idea at the time, but I'm hearing from more and more mainstream sources that it is NO GOOD.*
This is the most recent article I've seen, which cites not only the resistant-bacteria reason for not using it, but also says that it may be both harmful to wildlife as well as we humans.
When you combine such possibilities with the fact that antibacterial soap (almost always sold as a liquid) is more expensive and has more environmental costs in terms of packaging (thick plastic vs. thin plastic, paper, or nothing) and shipping (liquid soap is essentially solid soap diluted with a bunch of water weight- why ship water across the country when it comes locally out of your faucet?), I have to wonder how it got (and stays) so big, anyway. I think it is all part of some sort of cultural phobia of germs, dirt, and bodies (especially other people's bodies- rubbing soap on your hands that someone else rubbed on their hands, you know?). But hey, facing fears is good for us!
PS- This topic is quite possibly old news here, but I learned something new from that article I linked, and thought this community has been pretty quiet lately.
*This may or may not be so for medical personnel, grade-school teachers, and other professions where you're exposed to tons of bacteria on the job. I'm speaking here strictly of what I know, which is at-home use.
This is the most recent article I've seen, which cites not only the resistant-bacteria reason for not using it, but also says that it may be both harmful to wildlife as well as we humans.
When you combine such possibilities with the fact that antibacterial soap (almost always sold as a liquid) is more expensive and has more environmental costs in terms of packaging (thick plastic vs. thin plastic, paper, or nothing) and shipping (liquid soap is essentially solid soap diluted with a bunch of water weight- why ship water across the country when it comes locally out of your faucet?), I have to wonder how it got (and stays) so big, anyway. I think it is all part of some sort of cultural phobia of germs, dirt, and bodies (especially other people's bodies- rubbing soap on your hands that someone else rubbed on their hands, you know?). But hey, facing fears is good for us!
PS- This topic is quite possibly old news here, but I learned something new from that article I linked, and thought this community has been pretty quiet lately.
*This may or may not be so for medical personnel, grade-school teachers, and other professions where you're exposed to tons of bacteria on the job. I'm speaking here strictly of what I know, which is at-home use.