LYRICFLUENT
LYRICFLUENTWhich Is Better: Soap Or Hand Sanitizer? Lyrics by Addison Anderson Addison Anderson
Below, you will find the lyrics for Which Is Better: Soap Or Hand Sanitizer? by Addison Anderson.
Your hands, up close, are anything but smooth
With peaks and valleys, folds and rifts
There are plenty of hiding places for a virus to stick
If you then touch your face, the virus can infect you
But there are two extraordinarily simple ways
You can keep that from happening
Soap and water, and hand sanitizer
So which is better?
The coronavirus that causes COVID-19
Is one of many viruses whose protective outer surface
Is made of a lipid bilayer
These lipids are pin shaped molecules whose heads
Are attracted to water
And tails are repulsed by it
So in water-rich environments, lipids naturally form a shell like this
With the heads outside and the tails inside
Their shared reaction to water makes the lipids stick loosely together—
This is called the hydrophobic effect
This outer structure helps the molecular machinery of the virus
Break through cellular membranes and hijack our cells
But it has thousands upon thousands of weak points
Where the right molecules could pry it apart
And this is where soap comes in
A single drop of any brand of soap contains quadrillions of molecules
Called amphiphiles, which resemble biological lipids
Their tails, which are similarly repulsed by water
Compete for space with the lipids that make up the virus's shell
But they're just different enough to break up
The regularity of the virus's membrane
Making the whole thing come crashing down
Those amphiphiles then form bubbles of their own around particles
Including the virus's RNA and proteins
Apply water, and you'll wash that whole bubble away
Hand sanitizers work less like a crowbar, and more like an earthquake
When you surround a coronavirus with water
The hydrophobic effect gives the bonds within
The membrane their strength
That same effect also holds the big proteins
That form coronavirus's spikes in place
And in the shape that enables them to infect your cells
If you dry the virus out in air, it keeps its stability
But now surround it with a high concentration of an alcohol
Like the ethanol or isopropanol found in most hand-sanitizers
This makes the hydrophobic effect disappear
And gives the molecules room to move around
The overall effect is like removing all of the nails
And mortar from a house
And then hitting it with an earthquake
The cell's membrane collapses and those spike proteins crumble
In either method, the actual process of destroying the virus
Happens in just a second or two
But doctors recommend at least 20 seconds of hand-washing
Because of the intricate landscape that is your hand
Soap and sanitizer need to get everywhere
Including your palms, fingertips
The outsides of your hands, and between your fingers
To protect you properly
And when it comes to a coronavirus outbreak
Doctors recommend washing your hands with soap
And water whenever possible
Even though both approaches are similarly effective at killing the virus
Soap and water has two benefits
First it washes away any dirt which could otherwise hide virus particles
But more importantly
It's simply easier to fully cover your hands with soap and water
For 20 seconds
Of course, hand sanitizer is more convenient to use on the go
In the absence of a sink, use the sanitizer as thoroughly as possible
And rub your hands together until they're dry
Unfortunately, there are billions of people
Who don't have access to clean drinking water
Which is a huge problem at any time but especially during an outbreak
Researchers and aid groups are working
To provide solutions for these communities
One example is a device that uses salt, water, and a car battery
To make chlorinated water that kills harmful pathogens
And is safe for hand-washing
So wherever possible, soap and water
Are recommended for a coronavirus
But does that mean it's best for every viral outbreak?
Not necessarily
Many common colds are caused by rhinoviruses
That have a geometric protein structure called a capsid
Instead of a lipid membrane
The capsid doesn't have nearly as many weak points
Where soap amphiphiles can pry it apart
So it takes longer for soap to be effective
However some of its surface proteins are still vulnerable
To the destabilizing effect of hand sanitizer
In this and similar cases, hand sanitizer may be more effective
Especially if you then wash your hands to remove residual particles
The best way to know which to use for any given outbreak
Is to do what's best for all things illness-related
Follow the advice of accredited medical professionals
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