GUEST REVIEW: Clean Well All-Natural Hand Sanitizer
by Jenni Simmons

I quit using Purell and other similar hand sanitizers a long time ago. I read enough bad information to spook me, and I figured that old-fashioned soap and water are the best way to clean my hands. Speaking of soap, I received an e-mail from Campaign for Safe Cosmetics alerting me to the dangers of triclosan. I advise you to avoid that nasty ingredient when choosing your soap. Now, what was I saying?

Oh. Yes - hand sanitizers. Like I said, I avoid such antibacterial products, but on a recent trip to Austin, TX, I stumbled across Clean Well All-Natural Hand Sanitizer in Whole Foods. Intrigued, I purchased a trial-size. I used 1-2 squirts and miraculously, it did not dry out my hands. It even smelled OK - citrusy and herbal. It was a great time to give this product a try because I was traveling with my husband. I completely agree with Kerry’s latest tip - washing your hands is important no matter where you are - but if the stretch between two gas stations is long enough on a road trip, wouldn’t a natural hand sanitizer come in handy?

Upon arriving home, I turned to Skin Deep for the facts. Purell received a high hazard rating of 7 (out of 10). They did not sign the Compact for Safe Cosmetics, 94% of other hand sanitizers have lower concerns (not a good sign), and well, here is the scary (capital letters!), lengthy ingredient list:

ACTIVE INGREDIENTS: ETHYL ALCOHOL 62%. INACTIVE INGREDIENTS: WATER (AQUA); STEARYL ALCOHOL; CYCLOMETHICONE; C12-15 ALKYL BENZOATE; CETYL LACTATE; COCAMIDOPROPYL PG-DIMONIUM CHLORIDE PHOSPHATE; GLYCERIN; PEG-4; PROPYLENE GLYCOL; TOCOPHERYL ACETATE; AMINOMETHYL PROPANOL; CARBOMER; STYRENE/ACRYLATES COPOLYMER; FRAGRANCE (PARFUM); DIAZOLIDINYL UREA; IODOPROPYNYL BUTYLCARBAMATE; METHYLPARABEN; PROPYLPARABEN.

I don’t see much natural there, and right off the bat, I see alcohol, fragrance, and parabens. No, thank you.

On the other hand (no pun intended), Skin Deep gave Clean Well’s hand sanitizer a fairly low rating of 2 (out of 10). They kindly signed the Compact for Safe Cosmetics, 19% of other hand sanitizers have lower concerns (much better), and here is their shorter ingredient list (from the packaging in my hands):

Active ingredient: Thymus Vulgaris (common thyme) oil. Inactive ingredients: Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera) Leaf, Citric Acid, orange oil, Copper PCA, Dicapryl Sodium Sulfosuccinate, Hydrolyzed Oats, litsea cubeba (litsea) oil, Sodium Citrate, origanum vulgare (oregano) oil, Water.

I see many more natural terms there - thyme, aloe, orange oil, oats, and oregano. I also love that the one active ingredient is thyme, a natural sanitizer. And, did you notice? No alcohol! As for the other ingredients, you can research them from Skin Deep’s review to your own satisfaction. In addition, if you read Skin Deep’s review of both hand sanitizers, it’s not hard to decide which is the safer product.

However, Clean Well’s hand sanitizer does raise a few warning flags such as possible neurotoxicity, so I’m not completely sold on their product, either. I think soap and water are always the best route, but if I head out on the road, I will stick Clean Well in my purse. Just in case.