Clean versus Sanitize

Winter is here in Maryland.  To keep your family healthy through the winter, let's clean and sanitize the way to spring. What are the difference between clean, sanitize, and disinfect?

Clean -- is the process of removing food and other types of soil from a surface, such as a dish or cutting board, using hot soapy water.

Sanitize -- is a process that decreases the number of germs on a correctly cleaned surface.

Disinfectants -- substances put on non-living objects, such as a kitchen counter to kill germs that are living on the object's surface.

How often should I clean and sanitize?
That will depend on your household.  Do you have older adults age 65 years or older?  Do you have children under the age of 5 years?  Is there someone in the home that is pregnant?  Does anyone in the home have diabetes, cancer, or other disease that might cause them to be at risk for infection easily?  Do you have indoor or outdoor pets?  If you answered yest to any of these questions, you may want to sanitize your house daily.

What makes a disinfectant good to use?  A good disinfectant works best when:

1. The surface you are going to put a disinfectant on is clean.
2. It is at the right temperature.
3. The disinfectant is allowed to sit on the surface for a certain amount of time.

Recipe:  Homemade disinfectant

1.  Add 1 teaspoon of chlorine bleach to 1 quart of water.
2. Mix at room temperature.
3. Spray on clean surface.
4. Let sit for 1 minutes.
5. Clean off surface with a paper towel or let surface air dry. 

Want to know more about making other disinfecting your kitchen, visit Cleaning & Sanitizing the Kitchen.