{"data":{},"content":[{"data":{},"content":[{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":"There’s a natural inclination to think “ew” when presented with a foreign, used bar of soap. Someone else’s germs might be on that, right?! Wrong, according to ","nodeType":"text"},{"data":{"uri":"https://profiles.ucr.edu/app/home/profile/jmorriso"},"content":[{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":"Juliet Morrison","nodeType":"text"}],"nodeType":"hyperlink"},{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":", PhD, assistant professor at University of California Riverside’s Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, whose research focuses on immunological and virological methods.","nodeType":"text"}],"nodeType":"paragraph"},{"data":{"target":{"sys":{"id":"5zru4YO4sxOu2na7x7T3Vn","type":"Link","linkType":"Entry"}}},"content":[],"nodeType":"embedded-entry-block"},{"data":{},"content":[{"data":{"uri":"https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2013-125/default.html"},"content":[{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":"The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendation about not sharing personal items","nodeType":"text"}],"nodeType":"hyperlink"},{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":" (including bar soap) is referencing methicillin-resistant staphylococcus, also known as MRSA, a type of staph infection that is resistant to certain types of antibiotics, “which is a bacterium,” says Dr. Morrison. “Bacteria are much more hardy than viruses, especially enveloped viruses like SARS-CoV-2,” (i.e., COVID).","nodeType":"text"}],"nodeType":"paragraph"},{"data":{},"content":[{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":"If you’re concerned about MRSA, that’s one thing—but when it comes to contagious viruses like COVID, Dr. Morrison says you should be fine. It’s ","nodeType":"text"},{"data":{},"marks":[{"type":"italic"}],"value":"super","nodeType":"text"},{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":" unlikely that it would remain on a bar of soap; she says bar soap is arguably just as safe as liquid soap in a shared environment.","nodeType":"text"}],"nodeType":"paragraph"},{"data":{},"content":[{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":"“The CDC guidance makes sense when talking about MRSA, but I don’t think this guidance is best for viruses,” she says. “Though there is a tiny possibility that an enveloped virus could remain intact on a bar of soap, once the bar of soap is rubbed with water to produce a lather, the viral envelope would be disrupted by the detergent particles, and the virus would no longer be infectious. The key is to have a good lather going.”","nodeType":"text"}],"nodeType":"paragraph"},{"data":{},"content":[{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":"In fact, in the case of COVID or another virus, Dr. Morrison explains that the infected person would have to cough into their hand and then touch a bar of soap—and then not lather the soap to spread bacteria (see what we mean by unlikely?).","nodeType":"text"}],"nodeType":"paragraph"},{"data":{},"content":[{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":"“Such high viral loads on a bar of soap are very unlikely,” she says, but—“If people are worried about this minute risk, I would suggest using liquid soap, and sanitizing the pump of the soap dispenser before and after each use if the pump comes into direct contact with people’s hands.”","nodeType":"text"}],"nodeType":"paragraph"},{"data":{},"content":[{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":"For some people, the stress of even that tiny possibility of infection might be damaging in and of itself; in that case, follow Dr. Morrison’s advice: Get ","nodeType":"text"},{"data":{"uri":"https://www.wellandgood.com/beauty/bathing-culture-mind-body-wash"},"content":[{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":"a liquid soap with a pump","nodeType":"text"}],"nodeType":"hyperlink"},{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":". Or, keep your soap to yourself in a personal caddy if you’re in a shared bathroom. Otherwise, you should be fine… it is soap, after all!","nodeType":"text"}],"nodeType":"paragraph"},{"data":{},"content":[{"data":{},"marks":[{"type":"italic"}],"value":"On the hunt for more skin-care tips? Check out this derm’s shower routine:","nodeType":"text"}],"nodeType":"paragraph"},{"data":{},"content":[{"data":{},"marks":[],"value":"","nodeType":"text"},{"data":{},"marks":[{"type":"italic"},{"type":"bold"}],"value":"Want even more beauty intel from our editors? Join Well+Good’s ","nodeType":"text"},{"data":{},"marks":[{"type":"italic"}],"value":"Want even more beauty intel from our editors? 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