Some mouthwash can be strong–very strong as a matter of fact. Sometimes, if you leave it in your mouth too long, the tingle may turn to a burning sensation.
A few kinds of mouthwashes are so strong in fact, they make us wonder how strong.
One researcher, when shopping, thought about how strong his mouthwash was at killing germs and decided to try it against the current COVID-19 coronavirus.
The findings are actually promising.
A new study conducted by researchers at the Penn State College of Medicine has found that a common dental item can inactivate human coronaviruses: mouthwash and oral rinses.
For the study, the results of which were published in the Journal of Medical Virology, researchers tested various oral and nasopharyngeal rinses — which included a 1% solution of baby shampoo (which is used in dental office rinses), a neti pot, peroxide sore-mouth cleansers, and mouthwashes — to determine how well they inactivated human coronaviruses, namely 229e, a strain that can cause the common cold.
The mouthwash and oral rinses tested — which included Listerine Antiseptic, Orajel Antiseptic Rinse, and Crest Pro‐Health, among others — were also efficacious, they found: “Many inactivated greater than 99.9% of the virus after only 30 seconds of contact time and some inactivated 99.99% of the virus after 30 seconds.”
Researchers put the virus in a solution with each of the products for 30 seconds, then one minute and finally for two minutes (Critics point out the timing is likely longer than the average person would keep mouthwash in their mouth).
To detect how much of the virus was inactivated, researchers diluted the solutions and put them in contact with human cells.
After a few days, they counted how many human cells remained alive after exposure to the products.
Among the findings,