Unless you are living under a rock, you’ve probably sat down and watched some cooking shows over the span of the last five years. If you’ve ever seen the show titled “Good Eats” you know which host we’re talking about. Alton Brown’s cooking show aired from 1999-2012 and just recently made a comeback last year.

The show delves into all sorts of things such as science and history, while Alton teaches food, the science behind cooking, and special tips and tricks to help make your dishes stand out.

Brown took his inspiration for the show from people such as Monty Python, and Mr. Wizard, which might explain a thing or two.

Alton tackles a tough topic on one of the latest episodes.

The popular chef recently released a video in which Brown talks passionately about a pretty controversial topic. He debates the differences between soap and hand sanitizer, trying to explain which one is best.

“Greetings humankind as we stand on the precipice of annihilation. I just want to say I’m happy that someone finally wants to talk about handwashing.” —Alton Brown

Brown makes the case that soap is the best selection for cleaning your hands. His video is comedic and funny, but at the same time, he takes the problem seriously. Alton doesn’t just give an overview, he goes into detail about exactly what you should be doing when you wash your hands on a daily basis.

Alton explains: “I’ve been wanting to do a hand-washing video for 20 years, but everybody was like, “Oh no. Hygiene is boring. Do cheese pulls.’ Well, what do you think is gonna save us now? Cheese pulls, nanorobots, lasers, hot yoga? I don’t think so!”

Stop hurting people at stores for hand sanitizer!

He mentions that people are fighting over hand sanitizers but regular old soap will get the job done. But that’s not antibacterial soap mind you.

“Antibacterial soap is useless!” Brown states.

What seems to be the problem with antibacterial soap? It has been a household staple in the United States for many many years. Why shouldn’t we use it in a pandemic? Well, Harvard Medical School had a bit of information on the topic.

“Triclosan in the amounts used in soap doesn’t kill many bacteria (concentrations of 0.2% or less), but it keeps the counts down partly because it has residual activity.” —Harvard Medical School

To dumb that down, the bacteria are not killed off totally by the triclosan. That means that bacteria survive and mutate to become more resistant to modern medicines and even antibiotics.

Here’s why soap wins the fight against bacteria!

During his video, Brown explains why soap works so well to kill bacteria. The reason involves something called amphiphiles.

Brown then launches into an explanation as to why amphiphiles in regular old soap help kill bacteria.

Brown explains it for us: “First, when you lather up your mitts with soap and water, you release amphiphiles, molecules in soap that have hydrophilic or water-loving heads and hydrophobic or water-hating tails, which means these guys can hold things together that don’t naturally get along, like oil and water,”

If you are in contact with something such as coronavirus, the germs cling to your hands unless you get rid of them by thorough washing.

“With proper agitation, amphiphiles in soap water can emulsify with this nastiness removing it from your skin and escorting it down the drain.” —Alton Brown

But hand sanitizers don’t wash anything away, and can’t actually emulsify a virus, Brown mentions.

Alton Brown’s recommended hand washing method!

Alton concludes his scientific film by demonstrating proper handwashing techniques in light of the recent pandemic. Brown recommends bard soap due to its efficiency and also because it causes less strain on our environment.

Then he reveals the secret to effective handwashing: the 30-second wash rule.

• Select hot or cold water, it doesn’t matter but completely wet your hands.
• Get a good lather going for 5 seconds and place the soap back.
• Then, wring your hands together and do this for 5 seconds.
• Next, rub the back of each hand for 5 seconds.
• Now, clean your fingernails by rubbing them against your opposite palm for 5 seconds on each hand.
• After that, rub in between your fingers for 5 total seconds.
• To finish off, rinse the soap bar, and rinse your hands for 5 seconds.

“That’s more like 45 seconds. And I do this like five times a day,” Brown laughingly concedes.

Check out the video below for Alton Brown’s complete handwashing guide!

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

Source: Harvard Medical School,Youtube/Alton Brown,BrevisCorp