Hello. My somewhat credulous colleague is decrying the use of alcohol based hand sanitizer, and has come up with this product as an alternative. Looks like bullshit to me, but of course, my word means nothing. Anyone got any ammo for me in my little fight against ignorance?
Silver has some antimicrobial qualities. Extracts of the essential oils from thyme are used as antiseptics, including in some Listerine formulations.
Dunno how they compare to the alcohol in a standard hand sanitizer though.
I am unable to find any published scientific journal articles about efficacy and safety of the “active ingredients” in Argentus in a Pub Med literature search. There don’t appear to be any on their website either. I wonder where they got the claim that alcohol sanitizers promote bacterial growth, or about poisonings supposedly due to alcohol-based hand sanitizers.
Zinc oxide is used in other topical products (i.e. sunscreen) and interestingly, there is some literature on potential cell toxicity of ZnO. The silver component of Argentus raises another question. Hand sanitizers are used on a frequent basis by many people (I work in surgical pathology and apply the stuff at least a half dozen times a day). Is it safe to use a silver-based product this often, knowing that overuse of a popular alt med remedy (colloidal silver) has resulted in permanent blue-gray discoloration of skin?
What clinical tests have been done on the Argentus sanitizer, and is it safe and effective long-term?
Silver turns your skin permanently graywith enough exposure.