This archive report was first published on 27 June 2020.
On May 27, 2020, the New Mexico Poison Control reported seven cases of methanol poisoning, resulting in three deaths and one permanent blindness, after individuals drank hand sanitizer in New Mexico.
According to the New Mexico Department of Health, all seven people are believed to have drunk hand sanitizer containing methanol. The cases were related to alcoholism, but no additional details were provided on the victims or the location of the incidents.
Some individuals have been known to use hand sanitizer to get intoxicated due to its alcohol content. Before the pandemic, hand sanitizer was banned in most prisons based on fears that inmates would drink it or use it to start fires. However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended that facilities consider relaxing restrictions on alcohol-based sanitizer to help combat coronavirus.
Recently, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) urged people not to use hand sanitizer products manufactured by Eskbiochem SA due to the potential presence of a toxic chemical, methanol. Methanol can be toxic when absorbed through skin or ingested and can cause symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, headache, blurred vision, permanent blindness, seizures, coma, and permanent damage to the nervous system or death.
