Chemistry at home - Triclosan 

"Antibacterial Soap Triclosan" by JeepersMedia is licensed under CC BY 2.0 

I hope this picture looks familiar to you as you should be using this stuff everyday. The thing you might not know is that most of the soaps you use contain triclosan. Along with other personal care items like deodorant, toothpaste, acne cream and body wash.^1,2 It also can be found in common household items like chopping boards, sports equipment and shoes.^1,2

Triclosan is an antimicrobial agent meaning it slows down the growth of bacteria. It is the most effective against gram positive bacteria, fungi and yeast. It is least effective against gram negative bacteria, microbacteria and viruses.³ It targets the bacteria by two ways, either by inhibiting fatty acid synthesis or by going inside the bacterial cell membranes to disrupt the cell.³ This is also the reason why it is added to toothpaste as it prevents gingivitis and is an effective anti-plaque agent.³

There are a few health concerns for humans and animals. The major concern for humans is it effects thyroid homeostasis.² It can be a mild eye and skin irritant in high doses over 9300mg/kg¹, this is its dermal toxicity number which is higher than we could absorb by using everyday personal care products. The biggest safety concern is for animals as triclosan has been found in high concentrations on surface waters. This causes algal speciation to decrease and it bioconcentrates in fish causing toxic levels.³

Currently in Canada triclosan is not banned but in the United Sates and part of Europe the FDA has banned certain soaps from being marketed.⁴ Triclosan is still in toothpaste and deodorant as it was proven to reduce bacteria count but the soaps tested did not kill more bacteria then normal soaps without triclosan. Therefore, there is natural alternatives that exist like Carvacrol. Carvacrol is like triclosan because it is also a phenol with antibacterial properties.⁵

^References 

(1)         Triclosan | C12H7Cl3O2 - PubChem https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/5564#section=Absorption-Distribution-and-Excretion (accessed Jan 28, 2020).

(2)         Triclosan - DrugBank https://www.drugbank.ca/drugs/DB08604 (accessed Jan 28, 2020).

(3)         hand sanitizer -- Britannica Academic https://academic-eb-com.libproxy.mtroyal.ca/levels/collegiate/article/hand-sanitizer/623827 (accessed Feb 3, 2020).

(4)         5 Things to Know About Triclosan | FDA https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/5-things-know-about-triclosan (accessed Feb 3, 2020).

(5)         Carvacrol | C10H14O - PubChem https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Carvacrol (accessed Feb 4, 2020).