FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
In our formula, we have an active ingredient that is effective against the same virus type as Corona (CoV-2).
Coronavirus is a so called “enveloped virus” and are normally easier to kill than so called “non-enveloped” viruses ie. Norovirus.
Main virus are either enveloped or non-enveloped viruses. Our main active ingredient DDAC, with our percentage will most likely kill enveloped viruses, as in:
· Herpesviruses (e.g. Epstein-Barr virus, Herpes simplex, Bovine alphaherpesvirus 1 (causing Bovine Rhinotracheitis), suid herpesvirus 1 (causing pseudorabies=Aujeszky’s disease))
· Poxviruses (e.g. smallpox, vaccinia virus)
· Hepadnaviruses (e.g. Hepatitis B virus)
· Asfarviridae (e.g. African Swine fewer)
· Flavivirus (e.g. Hepatitis C, yellow fever virus, Zika virus, dengue virus)
· Alphavirus (e.g. eastern equine encephalitis virus)
· Togavirus (e.g. Alphavirus)
· Coronavirus (e.g. SARS virus, MERS virus, novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV – Wuhan coronavirus outbreak))
· Hepatitis D virus
· Orthomyxovirus (e.g. Influenza virus A (H1N1-swine flu, H3N2-Hong Kong flu, H9N2-avain influenza, H3N8, H5N1, H5N2…), Influenza virus B, Influenza virus C, Influenza virus D)
· Paramyxovirus (e.g. mumps virus, human parainfluenza virus, measles virus, canine distemper virus, rinderpest virus)
· Rhabdovirus (e.g. rabies virus)
· Bunyavirus (e.g. Hantavirus, California encephalitis virus, Congo hemorrhagic fever virus)
· Filovirus (e.g. Ebola virus, Marburg virus)
· Retrovirus (e.g. Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Mouse mammary tumor virus)
· Arteriviridae (e.g. Porcine Respiratory and Reproductive Syndrome Virus (PRRSV))
Beside this, our formulation have also been proven to kill the non-enveloped Norovirus.
YES. According to WHO, the most effective way to stop spreading the virus is keeping a high level of hand hygiene.
Hygiene of Sweden's formula has not only shown efficacy against viruses and bacteria but, according to clinical studies, gives a “significantly higher” cleansing effect when applied than soap and water.
We still recommend using soap and water but this is an outstanding complement to put in your pocket while travelling, dining, working, and when you want to assure yourself about having clean hands.
Clean hands is the safest way to protect yourself. Water-based hand sanitizing is better for you and worse for the bacteria.
Push the foam from the bottle and rub it, especially on the fingertips. Let it air dry. Your hands should not be washed with water and soap after you have applied the solution.
You may also use it on a screen. Apply foam or spray, make sure to cover entire screen surface, and wipe down with a piece of cloth. Don’t forget the backside of the phone or tablet, if applicable.
No. Hygiene of Sweden's Antibacterial and other products are safe to use if you follow the instructions on the label.
Avoid spraying into eyes, since it may cause minor irritation, but if it happens you can rinse it out with water.
If you are using a biofogger be careful not to inhale the particles. It is not harmful but it will lead to breathing discomfort.
No. Our Antibacterial contains no alcohol or anything flammable.
We use multiple active ingredients in our antibacterial solution. We combine them with a plus-charged polymer to make the solution adhere to any surface and this gives the solution a long lasting effect. The combination is very effective in killing bacteria and viruses without the risk of cultivating resistant bacteria.
Hygiene of Sweden is one of the products on the market that has undergone the most testing. Tests show that Biopolymer™plus kills 99.999% of bacteria and viruses. Our product has passed Europe standard EN 1500 and EN 13 697.
Short answer is that the product is much more effective. If a product is 99% effective, 1 out of every 100 bacteria survive. 99,999% means that 1 in 100000 bacteria survive – which is 1000 times more effective.
Having a product that only kills 99% can be dangerous if the remaining 1% is resistant. This 1% bacteria can very quickly create a resistant strain that is 100% immune to the active ingredient previously used to kill it.
Hygiene of Swedens antibacterial uses multiple active ingredients, thereby preventing resistance in bacteria.
The protection depends on how quickly the invisible protection wears off.
The factors we need to consider are if the hands are washed, rubbed against objects, sweat, gloves etc.
Yes. The formula is adapted to be used on any type of surface.
We especially recommend to use it on mobile phone screens, aeroplane tray-tables and other surfaces which are frequently used, but rarely cleaned.
1. Soap and water - good for removing dirt, bacteria and viruses, but provides no long-term protection.
Also, soap and water is not always readily available. Therefore the is a great need for hand disinfection (especially outside the toilets) for example in entrances, conference rooms, reception desks - where guests have not washed their hands for a while.
2. Alcohol has dominated the market for decades, has a very high dissolving effect (that is why you get dry hands, ethanol is a very strong solvent). Short-term effective against bacteria and certain viruses (Not the type of virus that is not encapsulated, eg winterflu). Alcohol is effective against corona (encapsulated virus) at a high % content but only for a brief moment as alcohol evaporates.
As alcohol has a high dissolving effect but low cleansing effect (in total, there are viruses left, such as Norovirus in tests), it is always recommended that you wash your hands with soap and water before use (see the back of the pharmacy's alcogel "Before use, wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water".)
This is the reason why every year in connection with the winter flu, newspapers and TV go out with "WASH YOUR HANDS WITH SOAP AND WATER. ALCOHOL DOES NOT WORK".
If you look at the use of alcohol in society today, I think we are talking about a few % who wash their hands before disinfection - the alcohol is thus used incorrectly.
3. Biopolymer™plus
According to Study EN1499 (which alcohol do not pass) and is a comparison between soap and water and an antibacterial product, in our case our formulation, the result shows "Significant higher cleaning effect than soap and water". This means that we do not need to recommend washing your hands before use for full effect. See attached study in PDF.
Studies have been done on the subject where it is shown that there are products that are more effective than soap and water.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2813169/
This may be the most important argument for our technology, but it needs to be communicated in a simple way to the customers so that they understand and value the product benefits.
EN 1500 is a quality review of agents for hygienic hand disinfection. Hygiene of Sweden's Antibacterial is well documented by various European standards and has been tested according to EN 1500 and received approval.
Never buy or use a hygienic product that does not meet these requirements.
Alcohol based hand sanitizer work by poisoning bacteria through a single active substance and they stop being active once they have dried out.
Hygiene of Sweden's Antibacterial is an advanced formulation that affects the bacteria in both a chemical and a physical way. That way you will continue to be protected even once it becomes dry.
Today the world’s hands are bathing in alcohol. Alcohol pretty much got synonymous to hand sanitising.
To produce one liter of Ethanol takes about 3 kilos of a crop and is a CO2 (carbon dioxide) expensive process. Cultivating the crop (fertilisers, pesticides, etc.), transportation, fermentation, distillation…
Our formula is water based and designed to be environmentally friendly.
Since it's more effective than alcohol, we also claim that staying away from a hospital is a great contribution for the environment as the health care industry alone, is responsible for about 10% of the total emission of CO2.
Also 15% of the waste produced by the hospitals are considered hazardous waste. Equivalent to approximately 0,5 kilos / day / bed.
Our philosophy is to always ask ourselves “How can we make a product that is functional, effective and still be completely regulated by authorities and leave a minimal foot print on the planet?”
We use active ingredients, depending on local regulations to be in compliance and to have the effect needed for our product. But more interesting is the minimal amount of something needed to be effective.
That is where science and talent comes in.
Our process for formulation does not leave any doors unopened, stones unturned, and no conclusions unchallenged.
Our lab specialises in green bio-science. To be effective and at the same time compliant and more environmentally friendly, is what makes our work at the lab always fun and exciting.
Leave a small footprint on the planet with your hands.
Read more about Green BioscienceNo. Our formula has no classifications.
Alcohol is a very dangerous classified chemical that should be avoided at a lot of places just because of the risk for fire.
With our water-based formula you can, actually, instead put out a fire.
Ref. IATA is requiring certain approvals for carrying it onboard
The answer is no. It is more effective.
Here are some of the main differences from a chemical substance that has antiseptic characteristics (Alcohol) and a formula that is designed to be antiseptic and adapted for its purpose.
Alcohol has a very fast and physical effect against microbes. It kills bacteria and viruses by dissolving them. Since alcohol evaporates at room temperature, the effect only lasts for 10-15s (depending on the % of the alcohol).
So how ofter should I use alcohol? Well if you think that you are in an environment that potentially could contain bacteria or viruses, the answer then is every 10-15s.
Hygiene of Sweden's Antibacterial formula does not evaporate. This means longer protection and a longer contact time towards bacteria and viruses.
Our clinical studies has shown positive effect against even Norovirus. This is a complicated (non-enveloped) virus to kill and alcohol has not been effective against this virus.
Alcohol attacks bacteria only in one way (as a solvent) and this has lead to the fact that some bacteria have gained resistance against alcohol (Ref. at the bottom to published studies on this subject).
Hygiene of Sweden's Antibacterial formula is designed to not create MRSA (Multi resistant bacteria) and attacks microbes both in a physical and chemical way.
Read more:
“Alcohol handwash is becoming less effective against some strains of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, but it doesn’t mean we stop sanitising our hands.”
By Dr Daryl Holland, University of Melbourne
https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/is-this-the-end-for-alcohol-handwash-in-hospitals
A recently published study on how some bacteria are getting more and more tolerant towards alcohol by the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity and Austin Health published in Science Translational Medicine:
This is both true and false.
True; talking about alcohol based hand sanitisers that higher alcohol % the faster and more effective it is (but it also has more negative side effects like evaporating faster, more aggressive towards your skin etc, more CO2 expensive production).
Also the last years studies showing that bacteria gains resistance towards alcohol. This forced the alcohol based sanitisers to increase the percentage to avoid creating multi resistant bacteria (MRSA).
False; if your antibacterial formula contains 0% and has clinical documentation against both viruses and bacteria.
Different countries have different regulations regarding biocidal products.
Our compliance expertise is working on always making sure that we follow the lastest requirement by the local health authorities.
Some examples:
USA – FDA regulates the market and provides a guideline for products to follow to be compliant. There is no registration to apply for.
Sweden – Swedish Chemical Inspection regulates the market and we have a registration of the formula since 2011.
Estonia – Health Board regulates the market and we have a registration since 2018.
India, Thailand and other markets- We are working with local authorities to make sure we are in compliance with local regulatory.
In Europe there is not a standardized test for long term effect.
While most commonly used hand sanitizers today is based on alcohol that we know is only effective before evaporation. Depending one the percentage of alcohol it evaporates within 10-15 seconds and there is no effect at all after evaporation.
Our formula does not evaporate, is designed to prolong our natural immune system (rather than dissolving the skin moisture) by adding a protective layer at the top of the skin. Because of its enlarged molecular size, it does not penetrate the skin.
It consists of a cationic biopolymer that attaches to negative surfaces (i.e. the skin) and to get it off you need to tear it off or use an an anion surfactant (i.e. soap).
Nothing last for ever but our philosophy is to give you something that is not a short term solution.