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Signs are hanging at the entrances to pharmacies stating that masks and disinfectant gels are not available. Drugstores and shops report sold out. If you didn’t manage to stock up on disinfectant, there’s nothing easier than making it yourself from three ingredients.
Instructions issued by the World Health Organization
Disinfectant gels that kill viruses and bacteria were, until recently, a staple of every pharmacy or drugstore. Unfortunately, the panic associated with the new type of coronavirus has caused the shelves where disinfectant gels used to be to be hopelessly empty. Therefore the World Health Organization (WHO) has issued instructions on how to easily make disinfectant gel at home by yourself.
Pharmacies will offer their own disinfectant
To make the gel you only need three basic ingredients that you should still be able to obtain safely at all pharmacies and drugstores. According to the latest information, some pharmacies will even start producing the gels themselves. This will help cover the demand, which in recent days has unpleasantly surprised sellers who couldn’t restock new goods in time.
3 ingredients you can get in a drugstore or pharmacy
To make homemade disinfectant gel according to WHO’s instructions, prepare a clean one-liter bottle, glycerin (also known as glycerol), hydrogen peroxide at 3% strength, and a liter of pure alcohol (ideally 96% ethanol or 99.8% isopropyl alcohol). You will also need one or two syringes and boiled water.
Into the one-liter bottle with the mark pour 830 milliliters of alcohol, to which you will add 42 milliliters of hydrogen peroxide using a syringe. Mix the mixture thoroughly and after mixing add 15 milliliters of glycerol with a new or boiled syringe. Again you will need to mix the resulting mixture. Then simply top up the disinfectant with boiled water to one liter. After mixing, let it stand for three days in a dark room.
There are other alternatives
If the above version of the disinfectant gel seems too runny to you, simply mix in aloe vera gel. You can find pure aloe vera gel in specialty health food stores, in some pharmacies or drugstores. For a better scent, add a few drops of essential oil. Antibacterial effects are provided, for example, by clove, lavender, thyme, or tea tree oils.
How to disinfect your hands properly?
Remember that whether you choose a store-bought or homemade disinfectant gel, you should rub your hands with it for at least thirty seconds. If the situation allows, do not rinse the disinfected hands or wipe them with a handkerchief. When washing hands with soap in the usual way, adopt the correct technique and dry your hands with disposable paper towels. Also avoid common hand dryers. Prolonged use of a dryer can cause dangerous bacteria to be reapplied to your hands.
