FT: EU mulls ban on alcohol antiseptics as ethanol raises cancer risk

The European Union is considering classifying ethanol as a potentially hazardous substance that increases the risk of cancer and pregnancy complications. About writes Financial Times.

If passed, this decision would effectively ban many hand sanitizers and detergents used in hospitals.

Alcohol-based antiseptics are now considered safe and have been on the World Health Organization's list of essential medicines since the 1990s.

on October 10, one of the working groups of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) published an internal recommendation calling ethanol a toxic substance that increases the risk of cancer and problems during pregnancy.

The issue will be finally considered at the meeting of the ECHA Committee on Biocidal Substances on November 24-27, after which the recommendations will be submitted to the European Commission, which will make the final decision.

Representatives of the medical field have already expressed concern, as ethanol antiseptics prevent about 16 million infections every year. They note that ethanol's alternative, isopropanol, is considered even more toxic.

In addition, according to them, using only soap and water takes more time and harms the skin of doctors.

The ECHA clarified that even if ethanol is recognized as carcinogenic, it may still be authorized for certain biocidal uses if the exposure is considered safe or no alternatives are found.

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