What are the best SANITIZERS to disinfect and prevent COVID-19?

In times of COVID-19, the use of disinfectants is an important part of prevention measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

Cleaning visibly dirty surfaces and then disinfecting them is the best measure to prevent COVID-19 and other respiratory viral illnesses, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

What are the products that work best to disinfect?
soap and water
According to Omar Carrasco, from the Faculty of Medicine of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), viruses like COVID-19 need a cell to activate because they are not biologically alive.

To prevent the virus from activating and ceasing to be infectious, Carrasco indicates that it is best to use soap and water, since the coronavirus is enveloped by lipids; that is, fat, which can be disintegrated with the use of soap.

The inactivation of viruses is very easy, in the case of COVID-19 it has an envelope that has fat, which is a layer of lipids, and this fat is very easy to dissolve with soap and water.” Doctor Omar Carrasco, UNAM Faculty of Medicine.

Chlorine with water
Chlorine is one of the most effective disinfectant agents against viruses and bacteria; However, Carlos Rius, from the UNAM Faculty of Chemistry, recommends making good use of this product to ensure its effectiveness and reduce risks.

To achieve good disinfection, it is advisable to dilute 20 milliliters of chlorine for every liter of water and not add other types of cleaning products.

It is suggested not to mix chlorine with vinegar, lemon, alcohol, hydrogen peroxide or ammonia, since these combinations could be toxic and dangerous to people's health.

Alcohol with more than 70° concentration
Disinfectants or alcohol with a concentration of more than 70° are more effective in eliminating pathogens such as COVID-19.

Whatever they use, soap and water, 70% alcohol, any preparation that causes the membrane of this virus to break, is enough to inactivate it, which is why the call to constantly wash your hands." Doctor Omar Carrasco, UNAM Faculty of Medicine.

Why is it important to disinfect surfaces and other preventive cleaning measures?
The UNAM academic states that in the specific case of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, it can be active for up to 48 hours on some surfaces.

Therefore, it is of utmost importance to clean and disinfect commonly used areas and things such as tables, door handles, light switches, desks, toilets, faucets, telephones, sinks and electronic items, with the intention of preventing COVID-19. and other respiratory viral illnesses, the CDC suggests.

Likewise, the layer of fat that covers the coronavirus allows it to adhere to human skin, so a good handwashing with soap and water for 20 seconds will inactivate and remove the virus completely, avoiding contagion by coronavirus and other diseases. .

If you put a little soap on a droplet of fat, you see perfectly that it moves, that it is interrupted, so that is what we are looking for, with soap and water all the fat compounds that the virus envelope has are dissolved and the “The virus is inactivated and then it can no longer be infectious, and that is the idea.” Dr. Omar Carrasco, UNAM Faculty of Medicine

What products are not used to disinfect?
Among the misinformation that circulates, mainly on social networks, around remedies to disinfect surfaces and hands to avoid coronavirus, is the use of elements such as lemon, vinegar and fabric softener.

However, the specialist from the Faculty of Medicine affirms that this is not true, since viruses are not killed since they are not biologically alive, and they cannot be deactivated since the composition of these products does not have the ability to disintegrate the lipid or fat layer that surrounds COVID-19.

“This combination of fabric softener with something else that kills the virus is inaccurate because viruses are not alive.” Dr. Omar Carrasco, UNAM Faculty of Medicine.

For this reason, authorities from the Ministry of Health (SSa) call on people not to pay attention to myths and fake news about how to avoid or cure the coronavirus.