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First, this is good information and especially useful when so many of us are coming out of human hibernation and welcoming Spring 08.
Celebrate good times, come on.
The question? Is hand sanitizer a viable alternative to washing one's hands when gardening?
Thanks.
Yes, a good quality one, not the dollar store kind. I keep one in my garden bag, I actually don't use if for the purpose of washing my hands. I use it as first aide measure, especially if I'm pruning or working with my roses. It works great to keep from getting rose thorns stuck under your skin. It also has enough alcohol in it to act as a disinfectant in a pinch.
Hand sanitizer is good - but I would still follow Doc's advice and wear gloves. There are some very real stories out there of gardeners who not only lost a digit, but their lives, due to infections that weren't prevented, and then weren't cared for properly. I have a first aid kit that has tweezers, alcohol wipes, bandaids, water, etc. in case I should injure myself - so far, not needed, but nice to have! One thing I added to the kit last year was the Poison Ivy wipes that are essentially very soapy things in sealed packs. I did end up with poison ivy - but only because I didn't wash my gloves, and got it around my arms where the cuffs of the gloves hit my skin, and I didn't realize it. Now the gloves go in the wash with the long-sleeved shirts and the caps :)
Along those lines, in l999 I got a strep infection in bones/discs (?)
of my back! Each doctor involved asked me if I had been digging
in dirt or had been stuck by roses. Yes to both questions.
Infection was cured with 6 weeks of IV antibiotic.
Fitsy
