How Washing With Soap Kills Viruses of All Kinds
In a bubbly report for Vox, producer Madeline Marshall shared exactly why viruses of any and all kinds are no match for washing with plain old bar of soap. Soap has specific amphiphilic properties that attach and completely annihilate disease-ridden molecules.
Marshall explains that viruses are surrounded by a layer of fat, as Alton Brown previously demonstrated. This layer of fat cannot be washed off with just water as the two substances don't mix. The addition of soap not only cuts through the two and creates a potent emulsion that washes away the virus for good.
Related Laughing Squid PostsAlton Brown Explains Why Soap Is Better Than Hand Sanitizer During an Amusing Handwashing TutorialBeer Soap, A Collection of Soaps Made by Hand Using a Variety of Popular Domestic and Imported BeersA Simply and Beautifully Designed Ring-Shaped Soap That Conveniently Hangs on a Peg to DryHypoallergenic Vegan Soaps Shaped Like Chemical Elements From the Periodic TableA Geeky Series of Video Game Controller Gamer SoapsA Charming Line of Skull-Shaped Artisan SoapsYou've been told a thousand times: wash your hands to stop the spread of COVID-19. But why does this work so well? It has to do with the way the soap molecules are able to absolutely demolish viruses, like the coronavirus.
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