How to Make Hand Sanitizer at home

During a pandemic the best way to get rid of infectious diseases like COVID19 is by regularly washing your hands with soap. But if water or soap are not available, next option is to use an alcohol based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. At the moment it is very difficult to find hand sanitizers at a store or online due to the rapid spread of the coronavirus disease. Most shops, online stores and manufacturers can't keep up with the demand and supply for hand sanitizers.

But there is no need to panic if you can't get hand sanitizers online or in stores. All it takes is only three ingredients to make your own hand sanitizer at home. Making your own hand sanitizer is extremely easy and the materials required is fairly limited. The materials required are:

• Alcohol ( Rubbing alcohol)

• Aloe Vera extract or gel

• Essential oil or Body oil

The most effective way to make a hand sanitizer is to have a ratio of 2:1 proportion of alcohol to aloe vera, this is the minimum requirement needed to get rid of the germs. This will also help keep the alcohol content around 60 %.

Hand Sanitizer Recipe

Requirements:

• 3/4 cup of rubbing alcohol or any alcohol with 99% alcohol volume which you have in your cabinet. 

• 1/4 cup of aloe vera gel extracted from your aloe vera plant and mash it until it becomes smooth and runny. This will help keep your hands smooth and counteract the harshness of alcohol.

• 2-3 spoons of essential oil or scented body oil. This acts as a preserving agent for your hand sanitizer so that you can use it for a longer period.

Directions:

• Pour all the ingredients into a jar, ideally one with a spout like a measuring container.

• Mix with a spoon and whisk to give the ingredient a nice mix.

• Pour the ingredients into a spray bottle for easy use, and label it HAND SANITIZER

Your hand sanitizer is ready to use.

Usage:

• Spray to the palm of one hand. 

• Thoroughly rub your hands together. Make sure to cover the entire surface of your hands and all your fingers.

• Continue rubbing for 30 secs or until your hands are dry. It can take upto 60 secs or longer for hand sanitizer to kill most germs.

Even though hand sanitizers can be an effective way to kill the germs,  health experts still recommend hand washing whenever possible to keep your hands free from diseases and germs .