Timely insights on whole room disinfection.
HospitalsApril 20, 2015
The Halo Disinfection System Shines Brighter Than Bleach
We appreciate bright, white sheets. We are all for snowy sweat socks. We are impressed when grass stains on Little League uniforms fade away.
But we are concerned about a recent study that concludes that kids are more likely to get sick in an environment where bleach is used as a disinfecting cleaning agent.
The study originally was published in Occupational and Environmental Medicine, an international peer-reviewed journal. It subsequently was reported in a New York Times health blog and media outlets around the world.
Researchers examined more 9,000 children between the ages of 6 and 12 in the Netherlands, Finland and Spain. They measured their levels of exposure to bleach, then evaluated the impact it had on their health.
They found an alarming increase in infections among children in households with high bleach use. The risk of flu was 20 percent higher and the risk of recurrent tonsillitis was 35 percent higher in bleach-cleaning households. The risk of infections recurring was18 percent higher among the children exposed to bleach.
The authors argued that bleach might damage the lining of lung cells, causing inflammation and making kids more susceptible to infection.
Further, researchers believe the hazards of bleach extend beyond the home. They write: “The high frequency of use of disinfecting irritant cleaning products may be of public health concern.”
We share that concern. If cleaning at home with bleach can harm healthy kids, imagine what it does to people who are old and sick and living in care facilities where bleach is the primary disinfection agent? And what about the people who work day in and day out cleaning with bleach?
The Halo Disinfection System kills pathogens without hurting people. It harnesses the powerful disinfecting power of aerosolized hydrogen peroxide to dispatch with such biological bad guys as C. diff and MRSSA.
Its hands-free fogging technology reaches every surface in a room, something a person cleaning manually with bleach can’t humanly accomplish.
Halo is the healthy solution for disinfecting hospitals, long-term care facilities, locker rooms and other places where maintaining public health is a priority. It’s stronger—and safer—than bleach.