Manon Dodet

How does soap work?

We use soaps every day in our daily life, to wash our hands, clean clothes even
to wash the dishes. Soap is able to clean dirt and oil very well because it acts
as an emulsifying agent. An emulsifier is a substance that stops liquids that
usually don’t mix from separating. This happens because a soap molecule is
made up of two different ends, one is water loving they are called hydrophilic.
Whereas the other end of soap molecule hates water - they are hydrophobic.
The Hydrophobic end of soap molecule attaches to the oil when the
Hydrophilic ends stick out into the water. This forms a drop of oil. The soap is
basically suspending the drop of oil or dirt and it is then easy to remove.

What does antibacterial mean?

If something is antibacterial it means that it is a substance often for cleaning

that kills bacteria or stops them from growing. Bacteria are tiny organisms that
are everywhere around us, on our skin, in our bodies and all through nature.
Bacteria are single celled microorganisms; their cell structure is unique as they
do not have a nucleus. Most bacteria are not dangerous but some can make us
sick, these bacteria are called pathogens. Pathogens can cause sickness in
plants and animals. To protect ourselves from catching bacteria we can use
antibacterial soap which is a soap containing chemicals that can kill bacteria.
The most frequent are triclocarban and triclosan. Triclosan and triclocarban
are both considered antimicrobial agents as they can destroy microorganism
(like bacteria).

What are the benefits of antibacterial soap?

 Antibacterial soap is very useful in places like hospitals or nurseries where
people have a weaker immune system. For example, hospitals often use
antibacterial soaps to clean the patients room or the exam room, this helps to
stop the patient from catching bacteria that could worsen their conditions.
Antibacterial soap is often used in the form of hand sanitizer, which is very
convenient when people do not have access to soap and water. Since hand
sanitizer are made to fit in pockets or handbags it is a simple way of killing the
bacteria on your hand anywhere you are. Another case where antibacterial
soap is helpful is the vet. Every single day, many sick animals visit the vet and
antibacterial soap is a good way to prevent germs and bacteria’s going from
animal to animal. Overall we can say that antibacterial soaps are good
especially for quick and efficient cleaning.

What are the problems with antibacterial soap?

Even though antibacterial soap seems to be very efficient and useful there are
many problems with it. Before we start talking about how antibacterial soap
can affect us we should know that it also affects the environment. When you
wash your hands with antibacterial soap it doesn’t just disappear it goes
through a wastewater treatment which is then turned in sludge (mud, slush)
which is spread on agriculture land. However, the problem here is that the
chemicals used to make antibacterial soap are well removed by the treatment
which means that the sludge thrown over the agricultural land contains
chemical which are bad for the human health. Another problem is that using
antibacterial soap can contribute to the resistance of antibiotic-resistant
bacteria. It is like for virus if you take too many antibiotics than it causes the
bacteria or viruses to become more antibiotic-resilient. An epidemiologist
Allison Aiello explained that when bacteria are exposed to triclosan, a chemical
used in antibiotic soap, they can go through a genetic mutation, which is a
change in hormones or genes. The mutation they would go through will not
only protect them from triclosan it will also make them more resistant to
antibiotic. Finally, we can just say that antibacterial soap isn’t more efficient at
preventing diseases than our regular everyday soap. Several studies like one at
oxford journal of infectious disease have shown that there are no significant
differences between antibacterial soap and normal soap and therefore
antibacterial soap is not more effective. In addition, antibacterial soap does
have a lot of side effects on the human body for example it increases risk of
allergies and can weaken muscle function.

Should we use antibacterial soap?

To my opinion antibacterial soap should not be used on everyday basis as it is
harmful for the human body and for the environment which is really not what
we are looking for in our society right now. However, I do not think that
antibacterial soap should be banned as it is useful in situation where water is
scare but also because it is very important for hospital and vet hygiene.
Hygiene is a key thing in hospitals and vet and so for regular quick washes they
need to be sure that it is efficient.

Bibliography

“6 Reasons Why You Should Stop Using Antibacterial Soap.” EcoWatch,

EcoWatch, 27 Sept. 2016, www.ecowatch.com/6-reasons-why-you-

should-stop-using-antibacterial-soap-1906692671.html.

“Biology for Kids.” Ducksters Educational Site,

www.ducksters.com/science/bacteria.php.

How Does Soap Work. 5 June 2015, www.planet-

science.com/media/43403/soap_293x267.jpg. (image)

“Pros and Cons of Using Antibacterial Cleaning Products – Janitorial Cleaning

Services.” Janitorial Cleaning Services, 12 Feb. 2007,

www.commercialofficecleaning.com/using-antibacterial-cleaning-

products.html.
Stromberg, Joseph. “Triclosan, A Chemical Used in Antibacterial Soaps, Is Found

to Impair Muscle Function.” Smithsonian.com, Smithsonian Institution,

13 Aug. 2012, www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/triclosan-a-

chemical-used-in-antibacterial-soaps-is-found-to-impair-muscle-

function-22127536/?no-ist.