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My Reward PointsKeeping your hands clean is essential to prevent yourself from catching an infection. You can use soaps to clean your hands but using hand sanitizers can be a better option. It is because they are formulated with special ingredients that kill most of the germs, viruses, and bacteria that might be infesting on your hands due to working or any other reason.
If you don’t want to buy a hand sanitizer from a shop because it makes your hands dry and rough, you can also make it at home. You need a few ingredients to make a DIY homemade hand sanitizer recipe that is both effective and mild on your skin. In this article, we have described the entire process of making hand sanitizer at home.
Why is Hand Sanitizer Necessary?
We all have realised the importance of hand sanitizers during the pandemic. Though the pandemic has receded now, we must continue with the good habit of washing hands regularly. We use our hands for eating food, cleaning our eyes, face, and mouth often. If our hands are ridden with pests, germs, and viruses, they can easily enter our body through food, water, saliva, or blood. Hand sanitizers contain certain chemicals and compounds that eliminate these microorganisms from the surface of our hands. Therefore, they indirectly enhance the immunity of our body.
Ingredients for Homemade Hand Sanitizer
To make a DIY homemade hand sanitizer recipe, you can use essential oils. These oils contain powerful antimicrobial, fungicidal, and antibacterial properties. Also, by using essential oils, you can avoid the chemicals that tend to be harsh on your skin. Here are the ingredients that you can use to make homemade hand sanitizers:
- Aloe Vera Gel - 1 cup
Aloe Vera Gel is added to hand sanitizers to prevent them from drying out your skin. Aloe Vera contains all the nutrients that nourish and moisturize your hands. Moreover, it contains strong anti-inflammatory properties that soothe your skin and heal damage and scars. It also dilutes the concentration of essential oils and alcohol that you will be using in this recipe.
- Lemon Essential Oil - 3 drops
Lemon Essential Oil is a natural disinfectant. It means that it eliminates the germs and toxins that can be harmful for your skin and body. Moreover, they give a nice citrusy aroma to your homemade hand sanitizer which in turn makes your hands smell fresh and clean.
- Tea Tree Essential Oil - 5 drops
Tea Tree Essential Oil is an effective destroyer of various types of fungi, bacteria, and viruses. Therefore, it prevents the entry of harmful pests and microbes in your body. It also has a deep herbal scent that goes with Lemon Essential Oil.
- Lavender Essential Oil - 3 drops
Lavender Essential Oil is known for its anti-inflammatory properties. It also possesses antiviral and bactericidal properties that keep harmful viruses and bacteria away from you. Adding Lavender Essential Oil to the homemade hand sanitizer recipe will give a soothing scent to it.
- Isopropyl Alcohol - 60% to 90% i.e. around 2 cups
You need to use Isopropyl Alcohol above 60% for disinfecting the microbes and germs effectively. Isopropyl Alcohol is added to hand sanitizers because of its ability to eliminate bacteria, viruses, fungi, and other microorganisms instantly.
Steps to make Homemade Hand Sanitizer
Now that you have become aware of the ingredients that are to be used for making a DIY homemade hand sanitizer, let’s dive into the procedure. It is not a difficult thing to make a hand sanitizer at home once you procure all these ingredients. A step-by-step process for making a homemade hand sanitizer is explained below:
- Step 1: Take a clean glass bowl and pour Isopropyl Alcohol in it. After that, add Aloe Vera gel and mix it nicely with the alcohol. Don’t use your hands or fingers to mix these ingredients as alcohol can dry your skin.
- Step 2: Add the essential oils one after the another. Don’t overuse the essential oils as they are concentrated and might cause severe irritation especially if your skin is dry and sensitive.
- Step 3: Mix all the ingredients nicely and transfer the content into a hygienic spray or pump bottle. Shake the bottle briskly before using the hand sanitizer to clean your hands.
How to Use a Hand Sanitizer?
Follow these steps while using the DIY homemade Hand Sanitizer Recipe:
- Step 1: Shake the hand sanitizer bottle well. Take a small pea sized amount on your hands and rub it briskly all over your hand.
- Step 2: Using a small amount of hand sanitizer would be enough to clean your hands. As your homemade hand sanitizer contains alcohol, using it in greater amounts can have a rapid drying effect on your skin.
- Step 3: Keep rubbing both the hands at least for a couple of minutes. After that, you may use cold and clean water to wash your hands.
Is it safe to use homemade hand sanitizer?
Using the above mentioned homemade hand sanitizer recipe is totally safe for your skin and health. We have taken all the care and provided proper steps and quantity to avoid any side effects. However, if you have skin issues like eczema or psoriasis, consult the doctor before using any hand sanitizer. As hand sanitizers contain alcohol which is flammable, keep it away from fire. Also, don’t rub alcohol and come near a gas stove as it is dangerous. Consuming hand sanitizer can be dangerous as it contains concentrated ingredients. Therefore, keep your pets and kids away from it.
Conclusion
Prevention is always better than cure. Hand sanitizers help you to prevent the entry of germs, bacteria, viruses, fungi, and other harmful microbes in your body. Therefore, they protect you from infections and harmful diseases. The above mentioned homemade hand sanitizer recipe will certainly prove to be effective without making your hands dry.
However, you shouldn’t overuse it. Also, only pure and organic essential oils are to be used for making a DIY homemade hand sanitizer. Be careful and keep your family members safe by making a powerful homemade hand sanitizer!
