Study dampens hopes of antibacterial soaps

Antibacterial soaps do not deliver the type of protection from common health ailments that consumers expect, according to a new study by researchers at Columbia University.

Researchers gave antibacterial cleaning products to 120 New York City families, monitored them for almost a year, and found they experienced about the same number of runny noses, sore throats and fevers as another group that got regular soaps and detergents.

The study, published in today's edition of the Annals of Internal Medicine, concluded that the products did not reduce the risk for symptoms of the viral infections that are among the most common causes of colds, coughs and stomach aches.

The study's lead author, Elaine Larson, said the results would not surprise physicians; the products tested were designed to kill bacteria, not viruses. But that may not be as clear to the average consumer, she said.

"People think, in their heads, that if they use an antibacterial soap, it will keep them from getting an infection," Larson said. "What we found is that these products don't offer much added value."

The study did not say whether the soaps were effective in reducing bacterial infections.

Brian Sansoni, a spokesman for the Soap and Detergent Association, a group that represents soap makers, said it was unfair for the study's authors to have tested antibacterial products for their ability to fend off viruses they were not designed to fight. "It's important to remember that the products that were tested here do not make antiviral claims."

Sansoni said other studies have shown that antibacterial soaps, detergents and lotions are effective in killing off organisms that cause a variety of illnesses, including skin infections and food poisoning. The growing use of antibacterial soaps in the home has been of concern to some scientists who theorize that their widespread use might lead to the evolution of harder-to-kill, antibiotic-resistant germs.