Washing Hands with Soap – Chemical Found, Which is Linked to Cancer

A new US study reveals that washing your hands with antibacterial soap can be quite dangerous. A chemical found in many liquid hand washes and other basic household products like shampoos and toothpaste has been linked with cancer, and said that it can kill a human being.

Triclosan is an antimicrobial agent of broad-spectrum and one of the most common additives used in a wide range of consumer products, from toys to kitchenware. The studies have also shown traces of the chemical in 97 percent of breast milk samples from lactating women, and also in the urine of nearly three-quarters of people, who are been tested. Moreover, Triclosan is also very common in the environment, as it is one of the seven most-frequently detected compounds in different streams across the U.S.

The researchers from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, have found that triclosan causes liver fibrosis and cancer in laboratory mice through molecular mechanisms, and these results are also relevant in human beings.

The researchers have also confirmed that triclosan may cause harm, when interfering with a protein responsible for detoxifying foreign chemicals in the body. It is also known as constitutive androstance receptor. As a result of these researches, liver cells reproduce and turn fibrotic. In the long run, this continued liver fibrosis can turn into a tumour formation.

The researchers and U.S. scientists also recommended that the humans should avoid products that contain triclosan, except for toothpastes, where the amount used is very small.