Episode 28 — Dirty Thirty Chemicals: The Antibacterial Agent That Kills More Than Bacteria

Episode 28 — Dirty Thirty Chemicals: The Antibacterial Agent That Kills More Than BacteriaHey, welcome back to KeysPure.com's Dirty Thirty. I'm Bob Root. Today it's Triclosan — the antibacterial superstar of the early 2000s. It was in everything: antibacterial soaps, deodorants, toothpastes, mouthwashes, face washes. Marketing convinced us that more antibacterial was always better. Science had other thoughts.Triclosan is a probable endocrine disrupter and carcinogen. It easily bio-accumulates to dangerous levels in the body and in the environment. It's an irritant. Animal studies show reproductive and other broad systematic effects. It may contain impurities linked to cancer. And here's an extraordinary finding: studies have shown that Triclosan can actually induce cell death when used in mouthwashes. The thing in your mouthwash killing bacteria was also potentially killing your cells.Japan and Canada have restricted it. The FDA eventually took action on its use in hand soaps in the US. And yet it still lingers in some products.There is also significant concern that widespread Triclosan use contributes to antibiotic resistance — making us collectively more vulnerable to bacterial infections. At Keys, we've always avoided it. Visit KeysPure.com for more.Episode Twenty-Eight of the Dirty Thirty — Triclosan, the antibacterial agent that went way too far.