Topic: Hand Sanitizer Recall: FDA Provides Testing Method to Check for Potentially Toxic Products
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is providing a laboratory testing method to assess the quality of hand sanitizers, as more products are added to its recall list.
The testing method can be used to ensure hand sanitizers contain the correct ingredients and do not have harmful levels of impurities. It can be used for hand sanitizers labeled with either alcohol (ethanol) or isopropyl alcohol (also called isopropanol or 2-propanol) as the active ingredient and can screen for potentially harmful impurities.
The FDA said in a news release: “Testing ethanol for methanol contamination is a quality standard set by the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) for alcohol used in pharmaceuticals (including hand sanitizers) and enforced by FDA pursuant to section 501(b) of the FD&C Act.
“USP’s revision bulletin for alcohol dehydrated alcohol monographs outlines this testing requirement, official as of September 1, 2020, which FDA requested to protect health care providers and consumers from using dangerous hand sanitizer products.”
The FDA is urging consumers not to use certain hand sanitizer products, including those that have been tested by FDA and found to contain methanol or 1-propanol. The ingredient 1-propanol was identified as a contaminant earlier this month, as hand sanitizers labeled as containing ethanol or isopropyl alcohol tested positive for containing 1-propanol.
Not to be confused with 2-propanol, isopropanol, or isopropyl alcohol, 1-propanol is not an acceptable ingredient for hand sanitizer products as it can be toxic and life-threatening when ingested.
