-
Science Saturday: The new super power of hand-washing
Share this:
Researchers are hard at work identifying ways to help patients with COVID-19, which is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. But in the meantime, one common household object can be used to help prevent infection.
Soap.
Good old soap, the Clark Kent of clean, is really the superhero fatty acid salt, the Superman of clean. Soap is made from a reaction between a fat, and either sodium hydroxide (lye), or potassium hydroxide (caustic potash). When these substances combine, they form a substance that is both attracted to water and repelled by it.
The part that is repelled by water is attracted to oil — naturally occurring on your hands, from whatever you were doing, such as eating, and what's found in the protective envelope around some viruses. You can see this when you put water and oil together. It naturally separates into two layers. But when you add dish soap, and swish it around, the layers blend. The molecules of soap are attracted to the oil/fat, causing the layer to bead up into droplets.
Read the rest of the article on Discovery's Edge.
____________________________________________
Other Mayo Clinic medical research websites:
- Research at Mayo Clinic
- Discovery’s Edge
- Advancing the Science
- Forefront
- Mayo Clinic Center for Individualized Medicine
- Center for Regenerative Medicine
- Center for the Science of Health Care Delivery
Information in this post was accurate at the time of its posting. Due to the fluid nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, scientific understanding along with guidelines and recommendations may have changed since the original publication date.
Check the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website for additional updates on COVID-19. For more information and all your COVID-19 coverage, go to the Mayo Clinic News Network and mayoclinic.org.
Share this:
Related articles
DEAR MAYO CLINIC: The Food and Drug Administration recently approved two new COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna. What are the recommendations for who should ...
Influenza, COVID-19, the common cold and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are among the respiratory viruses that will be circulating this fall and winter seasons. These ...
If you haven't had the flu in a few years, there's a reason. As Dr. Nipunie Rajapakse, a pediatric infectious diseases physician with the Mayo Clinic Children's Center, shares, ...