95% of Baby Food Tainted with Toxic Metals? Should You Worry About Artificial Sweeteners? Here are the labels of the two products. 777-127), based on laboratory testing that shows the products are effective against SARS-CoV-2. ', COVID: Why We Will Never Eradicate the Coronavirus. In this case, the quat is the soapy sponge. the answer is rather simple: alcohol and a common detergent. Lysol Makes a Killing On COVID. Kidney Stones ... Or a Chemistry Lesson About Them? It's time for The Dreaded Chemistry Lesson From Hell®! Nonetheless, it can't hurt to better disinfect surfaces that are often touched by the public. Viruses without envelopes (e.g., norovirus) are more difficult to kill. But the analogy breaks down here; unlike the apple, once the envelope is damaged the virus is toast. Should You Be Allowed to Drive After Being Given Propofol? (2) You can't technically kill a virus because it's not alive. Are "Low Dose" Health Effects of Chemicals Real? They are almost identical. To understand the difference we need to delve deep into the bowels of one of the most despised of all the sciences. The American Council on Science and Health is a research and education organization operating under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Why Kelsey Grammer Should Replace Alex Trebek on 'Jeopardy! In a press release , the agency said; Last week, EPA approved two products, Lysol Disinfectant Spray (EPA Reg No. Coronavirus Disinfectant Products, All 470 of Them. Your Yummy Morning Cup of Pesticide Won't Cause, or Prevent, COVID-19. 777-127), based on laboratory testing that shows the products are effective against SARS-CoV-2. Good luck getting the stuff now; the EPA has approved two sprays, Lysol Disinfectant Spray and Lysol Disinfectant Max Cover Mist. So here it is, back by unpopular demand. The combination of the two in one molecule gives it both oil and water solubility. Don't Panic, Everything Goes to Pot: Myths Are Driving FDA, CDC Vaping Policy, What the Hulk? Image: Research Gate. While it is comforting to spray and kill the little bastards, it is becoming more and more clear that respiratory droplets (person-to-person) are the primary mode of transmission and that surfaces play a less important role than once thought. How Toxic Terrorists Scare You With Science Terms, Adult Immunization: The Need for Enhanced Utilization, IARC Diesel Exhaust & Lung Cancer: An Analysis. What's Worse? Shown below is sodium laurate, a common soap. What's in there that can kill the virus? The EPA gave its approval for Reckitt Benckiser (which sells the stuff) to make anti-COVID claims for two Lysol products. Vaccinating Essential Workers: But Who Are They? In a press release, the agency said; Last week, EPA approved two products, Lysol Disinfectant Spray (EPA Reg No. He holds a Ph.D. in chemistry. This is why soaps and detergents will clean a greasy plate (1). I think so. BREAKING NEWS … 777-99) and Lysol Disinfectant Max Cover Mist (EPA Reg No. Think of an enveloped virus as an apple covered in butter. The two most common classes of detergents (Figure 1) are cationic (having a positive charge) and anionic (having a negative charge). Executive Vice President and the Director of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Science. COPYRIGHT © 1978-2020 BY THE AMERICAN COUNCIL ON SCIENCE AND HEALTH. Although anionic and cationic detergents both wash stuff, the anionic type is better at cleaning (laundry detergent) but the quats are better at disinfecting, especially when combined with alcohol, killing bacteria, viruses (2), and yeast. Help prevent the growth of mold and mildew easier with Max Cover. Teflon and Human Health: Do the Charges Stick? If you're asking "what's so special about those two sprays?" or "what's in there that kills the coronavirus?" Coronavirus has a lipid envelope. Good luck getting the stuff now; the EPA has approved two sprays, Lysol Disinfectant Spray and Lysol Disinfectant Max Cover Mist. Well, the Reckitt Benckiser company which sells Lysol cares plenty, because right now its two brands are the only products that are EPA-approved to kill coronavirus. You should care too because the sprays quickly killed the bug on hard surfaces in between 1-5 minutes, as was demonstrated in a May 24 letter to the editor in the American Journal of Infection Control. Figure 1. Contributions are fully tax-deductible. Yes, boys and girls. An Interview With Gastroenterologist Dr. Michael Glick. Can you spray Lysol in the face of people who will not wear masks? (Left) An anionic detergent containing a lipophilic (oil-loving) carbon tail and a hydrophilic (water-loving) head having a negatively charged sulfate group. A soapy sponge will clean off the butter but leave the apple intact. (Right) A cationic detergent containing a long lipophilic carbon chain (red) and a polar hydrophilic quaternary nitrogen (a nitrogen atom with four alkyl groups bound to it). Bloom and Seley-Radtke in the Baltimore Sun: 'Herd Immunity' is a Bad Idea. But it's not the stuff you wash your laundry with. Product Features. We raise our funds each year primarily from individuals and foundations. What Are the Chemicals in the Can? Traditional Holiday Dinner Replete with Natural Carcinogens - Even Organic Thanksgiving Dinners, A Primer On Dental Care: Quality and Quackery, Nuclear Energy and Health And the Benefits of Low-Dose Radiation Hormesis, Priorities in Caring for Your Children: A Primer for Parents, Endocrine Disrupters: A Scientific Perspective, Good Stories, Bad Science: A Guide for Journalists to the Health Claims of "Consumer Activist" Groups, A Comparison of the Health Effects of Alcohol Consumption and Tobacco Use in America. Drs. If your sole goal in life is getting your hands on a can of Lysol spray, be prepared to be bitterly disappointed. All the Chemistry You Never Wanted to Know About Heroin, & More, Do You Have 'Pandemic Stomach?' Note the charged (polar) oxygen on the left and the lipophilic 12-carbon chain in blue. Time for "The Dreaded Chemistry Lesson From Hell"? 777-99) and Lysol Disinfectant Max Cover Mist (EPA Reg No. My 94-Year Old Mother is Not a Drug Addict. (1) Soap is also an anionic detergent as you can see from its chemical structure. ACSH does not have an endowment. It's been pretty much impossible to buy a can of Lysol spray since the COVID nightmare began about seven months ago. They are very similar. Coronavirus: Fear of a Pandemic, or a Pandemic of Fear? There are two types of viruses, enveloped and non-enveloped. Quaternary ammonium detergents (called "quats") are typically a mixture containing different length carbon chains, which give the detergent different properties. Helping Smokers Quit: The Science Behind Tobacco Harm Reduction, Foods Are Not Cigarettes: Why Tobacco Lawsuits Are Not a Model for Obesity Lawsuits, The Prevention and Treatment of Osteoporosis: A Review. 9/11 Truther Mark Ruffalo Testifies to Congress on Science, Nothing Grimes Said About Eyeballs or Depression Makes Any Sense, Jeff Bezos' Plan to Colonize Space is Based on Sheer Nonsense, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is Helping Spread Flu and Cervical Cancer, Anti-Monsanto Lawyer and USRTK, Carey Gillam Collaborator Possibly Headed to Prison for Extortion, Journalist Peter Fairley Cites Anti-Vaxx Website, Spreads Misinformation on Flu, COVID-19, DeSmogBlog: Climate Website Is Headed by Anti-Vaxxer Brendan DeMelle, DeSmogBlog: Climate Activist Site Smears Freeman Dyson and Other Scientists. That's not clear. Dr. Josh Bloom, Executive Vice President and the Director of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Science, comes from the world of drug discovery, where he did research for more than 20 years. The Next Plague and How Science Will Stop It. Should You Worry About Artificial Flavors Or Colors? Morning Consult: 5 Policy Priorities to Ensure Equitable Access to COVID-19 Vaccine, Thank You, Trial Lawyers, For Protecting Us from the Scourge of Baby Powder. Below are the product labels. Non-enveloped (L) and enveloped (R) viruses. EPA announced Monday that Lysol Disinfectant Spray and Lysol Disinfectant Max Cover Mist killed the novel coronavirus in lab testing. 2X faster coverage vs Lysol Bathroom Trigger Spray; Kills 99.9% of bathroom bacteria and viruses** Destroys soap scum; Removes Mold & Mildew It is impossible to tell from the label exactly which "quats" are where, but it usually makes little difference. It's a different kind of detergent. Although they are structurally different, they have two essential properties in common - a water-soluble (polar) group on one end of the molecule and an oil-soluble group on the other. Enveloped viruses contain an extra layer of "protection" called a lipid envelope, which, ironically, makes them more susceptible to being killed (Figure 2).