Still works: Soap and water cleans your hands as effectively as harsh chemcial cleansers.

RODALE NEWS, EMMAUS, PA—The last place you’d expect to find dangerous germs are inside a bottle of hand sanitizer. But the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says that dangerous bacteria has been found in hand sanitizers and skin protection products made by Clarcon Biological Chemistry Laboratory, some of which are designed for application on open wounds.

THE DETAILS: Clarcon agreed to a voluntary recall of certain contaminated products in June, following an FDA inspection that revealed high levels of potentially disease-causing bacteria in the products. But U.S. Marshals this week seized all of the company’s skin sanitizers and skin protectants, including ingredients and components, at the Utah facility after the company refused to destroy them. The FDA is also warning consumers not to use any Clarcon products. No illnesses have been reported to the FDA.

If you own these items, toss them with your household trash:

• Citrushield Lotion

• Dermasentials DermaBarrier

• Dermassentials by Clarcon Antimicrobial Hand Sanitizer

• Iron Fist Barrier Hand Treatment

• Skin Shield Restaurant

• Skin Shield Industrial

• Skin Shield Beauty Salon Lotion

• Total Skin Care Beauty

• Total Skin Care Work

Clarcon has produced and distributed over 800,000 bottles of these products since 2007.

WHAT IT MEANS: The bacteria found in these products can lead to skin infections and tissue damage, and complications could require surgery. The incident is all the more startling since many of the skin products were marketed to protect open wounds from infection or to kill bacteria on the skin.

Here’s what you need to do to stay safe.

• Be old-fashioned. Numerous studies have found that washing your hands with good old soap and warm water kills as many germs as antimicrobial products. Avoid more expensive hand sanitizers and “antibacterial” soaps and choose unscented bars of soap for a safer, cheaper way of cleaning your hands.

• Report a problem. If you’ve used any of the seized products listed above and suffered a reaction, report it to FDA’s MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting program by calling 1-800-FDA-1088 or filling out a report online.