Transcript P5 J C - lhornec2e

Do Antibacterial Products
Really Kill?
Question
• Will Germ-X really kill 99.99% of germs on
hands, as claimed in their advertisements?
• Will antibacterial soap 99.99% of germs?
• Will antibacterial wipes kill 99.99% of
germs?
Research
Helpful information from my research:
“Germ-X contains 62 % alcohol, and does kill
99.99% of the viruses that make you sick.”
My research indicates antibacterial soap is just as
effective at killing bacteria as regular soap.
My research also indicates the antibacterial wipes
(depending on the brand) are only effective on
one bacteria type.
Materials
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10 unprepared Petri dishes.
Auger
5 prepared Petri dishes
Sanitized Q-tips
Germ-X
Antibacterial soap
Antibacterial wipes
A warm and dark place for the Petri
dishes, which will allow the bacteria to
grow.
Procedures with the 10
unprepared Petri dishes
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Using a “Sharpie”, I split the Petri dishes in half.
I made a control sample of no germ contamination.
I “contaminated” the Petri dishes by rubbing sanitized Q-tips
over designated surfaces, and then wiping the Q-tips onto the
Petri dishes.
Designated Surfaces:
My brother’s hands
The door knob
The TV remote control
I allowed the contaminated Petri dishes to grow for one week.
I documented (using a camera) the bacterial growth after one week,
and then again after two weeks.
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Note: After 2 weeks, the bacterial growth was too advanced to
differentiate the various germ colonies. At this point, I started my
experiment over.
Procedures with the
5 prepared dishes
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Using a “Sharpie”, I split the Petri dishes into thirds.
I made a control sample of each of the following: no germ
contamination, Germ-X, antibacterial soap, and antibacterial wipes.
I “contaminated” the Petri dishes by rubbing sanitized Q-tips over
designated surfaces, and then wiping the Q-tips onto the Petri
dishes.
Designated Surfaces:
My brother’s hands
The door knob
The TV remote control
I allowed the contaminated Petri dishes to grow for one week.
I documented (using a camera) the bacterial growth after three
days, one week, and ten days.
Data
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The data proved my hypothesis. The control
groups (no germ killing treatment) showed
significant and disgusting bacterial growth.
The Germ-X groups showed none, or very small
bacterial growth.
The antibacterial soap groups showed slightly
more bacterial growth than the Germ-X groups.
The antibacterial wipe groups had several small
colonies of bacterial growth.
Conclusion
If you use Germ-X then you can be confident
about having killed the bacteria on your hands.
If you wash your hands with anti-bacterial
soap, you can be fairly confident that you have
killed most of the bacteria on your hands. If
you use anti-bacterial wipes, you can be
reasonably sure you have killed most, but not
all of the bacteria on your hands.
Interesting Facts
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Most wipes actually spread bacteria (disinfectant
or not)
Germ-X is associated with the Red Cross.
Telephone buttons and play ground equipment
have more germs than fast food restaurant
bathrooms.
References
The medical news
metrostlouis.org
webmd.com