As a nanny, teacher, and caregiver, I’ve had more than my fair share of germ exposure. At home I often use homemade foaming hand soap, but that won’t work when I’m grabbing a grocery cart at Walmart. A natural DIY hand sanitizer with essential oils is just the thing to safely keep nasty germs at bay.
More than Dry Skin
A few years ago the FDA banned triclosan, the active ingredient in many hand sanitizers. Scientists speculate this chemical may contribute to antibacterial resistance and according to the FDA it’s not safe for pregnant women. But the ingredients that replaced triclosan aren’t much better.
Hand Sanitizers can Cause Skin Damage
Most hand sanitizers, even natural ones, use crazy high amounts of alcohol – about 70 percent. It may kill germs, but it’s also doing something more sinister to our health. Alcohol breaks down the skin’s protective acid mantle, which destroys the body’s natural defenses, and damages its ability to defend against further damage. Hand sanitizers can also cause wrinkles along with the damaged skin.
Cancer risk
Even worse, one study found 3 percent alcohol applied to skin for two days, caused cell death to jump by 26 percent! The more often alcohol is used on skin, the greater the damage. Even in small amounts alcohol causes inflammation and destroys our cells ability to defend against cancer causing free radicals.
We can’t completely avoid germs, but we also don’t want to destroy skin cells in the fight against bacteria.
Natural Hand Sanitizer Without Alcohol
Conventional brands rely on alcohol to kill germs but there’s more than one way to get the job done. Essential oils have a wide array of antimicrobial properties that kick germs butt. I chose cinnamon leaf and orange essential oil for this recipe, or you can buy a pre-made germ fighting blend. Tea tree, clove, oregano, thyme, and bay essential oils are also good germ fighting options.
How to Make Scented Hand Sanitizer
Take a whiff of most hand sanitizers and your nose will be left with a burning sensation from all that alcohol. The artificial fragrances some add to mask the smell only add to the health risks. Essential oils are my go to because they help fight germs and smell amazing.
Hand Sanitizer with Essential Oils
Certain essential oils may smell nice, but they don’t play so nice with skin. Cinnamon is one of those. Cinnamon bark and cassia cinnamon can easily irritate skin, causing rashes and burns when used in too high a concentration. While cinnamon bark in general should be kept below .07 percent, cinnamon leaf is safe up to .6 percent.
However, cinnamon is a germ fighting powerhouse so I’ve included cinnamon leaf in my diy hand sanitizer recipe. Orange is another favorite antibacterial essential oil of mine and is gentle on skin. Unlike some citrus oils, orange is not phototoxic and won’t increase sun damage.
Is Homemade Hand Sanitizer Effective?
That’s the magic question, isn’t it? A study published by Oxford University Press looked at cinnamon’s effect on bacteria. Researchers discovered cinnamon essential oil is effective against both gram positive and gram negative bacteria. A 2017 study, Essential oil components of orange peels and antimicrobial activity, found orange essential oil is also effective against a wide array of pathogens.
There’s a catch though. We have to use enough essential oil for it to kill the germs. When we overdilute essential oils they lose their efficacy, are a wasted effort, and can be dangerous. The diy hand sanitizer recipe below uses essential oils that are diluted so they’ll be both safe and effective.
What About WHO?
But hold up… doesn’t the World Health Organization (WHO) say only alcohol makes a working hand sanitizer? While it’s true the WHO recommends you put 75-80 percent alcohol on your hands, I’m not comfortable with that for the reasons mentioned earlier. Groups like the CDC and WHO have their place, but they also don’t recognize the growing body of literature showing the antimicrobial properties of essential oils on skin. The best solution is to always wash your hands with non-antibacterial soap and water, but hand sanitizers help in certain situations. Like at the gas station or grocery store.
This recipe is for those that prefer a more natural option. Like any homemade product though it isn’t officially tested and verified to be 100% effective. Personally I feel much better using this homemade hand sanitizer for myself and my kids. If you want to opt for an alcohol version though, then feel free to replace the distilled water with 70% isopropyl alcohol and 1 tsp glycerin.
Natural Hand Sanitizer: Not Just for Hands
DIY hand sanitizer spray is good for your hands, but I also use it on door knobs, shopping cart handles, and strangers on airplanes. I actually don’t spray down strangers with homemade hand sanitizer, but my friend Debbie does… or at least the air around them.
However you choose to use it, DIY hand sanitizer will make the germs scream and run in terror. Without destroying your skin and causing free radical damage.
Natural DIY Hand Sanitizer
Ingredients
- 2 oz glass spray bottle
- ½ tsp non-gmo glycerin
- 7 drops germ fighting essential oil blend
- OR 5 drops cinnamon leaf and 30 drops orange essential oil
- Distilled water]
Instructions
- Add the glycerin and essential oils to the glass bottle.
- Add just enough water to fill the bottle, but make sure to leave room for the spray tube.
- Shake well to combine.
- To use, spray on hands and other surfaces to disinfect. Shake before each use.
I am a firm believer in essential oils, they have changed my life
Me too!
Great recipe! What oils would you use? Lavender and Tea Tree perhaps (or something like a 4 thieves blend?)? Thank you for sharing this at the Art of Home-Making Mondays at Strangers & Pilgrims on Earth!
Yes I do use a 4 thieves type blend 🙂 You can get more info on which brand I love here! https://madmimi.com/signups/166637/join
Of course, this is so much safer and smarter than the chemical sanitizers! Thank you for sharing this healthier, natural DIY Hand Sanitizer recipe at the Healthy, Happy, Green and Natural Party Blog Hop. I’m Pinning and sharing.
I never thought about essential oils sanitizing spray. This does make sense. Thanks for sharing.
Sounds easy enough. 🙂 Thank you for sharing it at Savoring Saturdays!
What can I use in place of glycerin?
I am allergic to that.
Thanks!
You could use sweet almond oil or other carrier oil and just shake really well before spraying. A friend of mine has a strong coconut allergy and is allergic to coconut derived glycerin, but does fine with the non-gmo soy derived version. Do you know if you’re allergic to different kinds of glycerin? Maybe one would be ok for you.