![]() ![]() But it's a practice that's no longer advised. They've been doing it for decades, in fact. To help prevent this, people often douse a cut with hydrogen peroxide before applying ointment and bandage. ![]() "This exposed area of tissue then becomes vulnerable to infection." "When you have an open wound, you don't have that normal skin barrier there protecting you anymore," explains Dr. You're right in thinking that a wound needs to be cleaned and kept clean. Why you shouldn't put hydrogen peroxide on a wound "This means it's capable of causing oxidation, which is the reaction it uses to destroy the cellular walls and other components that germs need to survive." Michael Yaakovian, a surgeon and wound care specialist at Houston Methodist. "Hydrogen peroxide is a strong oxidizing agent," says Dr. It's also why it bubbles and fizzes when it comes into contact with certain organic and reactive substances. The addition may seem slight, but it's a fairly unstable, reactive one - the one that makes hydrogen peroxide a powerful disinfectant. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) contains just one more oxygen atom than water (H2O). That raises a logical question: Should it really be used on something as vulnerable as a wound? What is hydrogen peroxide exactly?Īt first glance, hydrogen peroxide actually looks pretty similar to water - by way of chemical formula, that is. But you might also now use it to disinfect your kitchen counters. You probably remember a parent using it to clean a cut or scrape back in the day. should you really be cleaning a wound with hydrogen peroxide? After the *ouch* that accompanies a cut or scrape, the next step is dealing with it.Ī little fizz of hydrogen peroxide to clean it. ![]()
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