Clark Howard's Tips

September 12, 2007

Should you buy antibacterial soaps for your home? People routinely pay more for them, but are they really a benefit?

The answer is no, according to a new report in The Journal of Clinical Infectious Diseases. The report found that you won't get any more sanitary with antibacterial soap than you will with plain soap.

There's even a stunner of a finding that suggests antibacterial soap can harm you by making you resistant to antibiotics.

About two or three years ago, Clark championed early reports about people developing antibiotic resistance from antibacterial soap. He got a lot of pushback from his crew at that time. People don't seem to want to hear that antibacterial soap isn't as good for them as it's cracked up to be. They often wonder why hospital staffers always use antibacterial soaps and lotions. It turns out that the concentration they use in medical facilities is much higher than what's available at retail.

So if you're wondering what soap Clark recommends, he thinks Ivory is great because of its affordable price. However, even he doesn't use this soap in his home. He admits to instead overpaying for Irish Spring!

Consumer advice courtesy of