7 Healthcast: Hand Sanitizers

What's the best way to protect against disease? Wash your hands. But what happens when you can't get to some soap and water. Experts say try hand sanitizers.

Dr. Iain Fraser, Mass. General Hospital
"We don't carry soap and water around with us. It's the convenience of the gels that's really important. So you can out you can go on T keep a bottle in your pocket before or after you touch the hand rail that somebody else as touched, and it does as good a job, and it does as good a job."

A study released today says families that use hand sanitizers may actually be able to cut the spread of gastrointestinal illnesses by 59 percent.

Good because it can stop the spread of germs. But don't confuse them with anti-bacterial soaps. Unlike those germ fighters - hand sanitizers are used without water making them easier and quicker. But they don't remove surface dirt - for that you need to use soap and water.

While this is the first study to show hand sanitizers actually reduce the spread of germs this super market in reading started offering the sanitizers to customers a few months ago.

Paul Duffy, Atlantic Supermarket
"We've had nothing but positive feedback on it. you know people are again conscientious with germs and the environment and they don't know who touched something."