So can you rely on liquid chalk to keep COVID-19 at bay?
I started seeing this idea thrown around as people were discussing gyms reopening.
Liquid chalk is basically hand sanitizer with chalk, one gym wrote in an email to membersposted on reddit.
(In an interview, the CEOnotedthat the pre-pandemic formula was around 45% alcohol.)
Still, I was skeptical.
Fortunately, scientists have actually attempted to answer this question.
To my surprise, they did.
One of the tests aimed to mimic real life use, and tested for bacteria.
(COVID-19 is a virus, not a bacterium, but well get to that.)
The team swabbed volunteers un-chalked hands as a control.
Then the volunteers applied the liquid chalk and let it dry, and the team swabbed their hands again.
Both samples were allowed to incubate on agar plates.
So what about viruses?
The team had actual SARS-CoV-2 to work with, the virus that causes COVID-19.
But they couldnt ethically spray that onto peoples hands.
The liquid chalk passed this test, performing about as well as a standard laboratory disinfectant.
Most of what we do is not related to liquid chalk, said Kedl.
This was all just kind of a fun little project that we had the chance to work on.
But it satisfied his curiosity about whether the chalk could kill germs and inactivate viruses.
The chalk companys CEO seemed pretty pleased with it too.
Its still not a hand sanitizer
That sounded reassuring, but is it good enough?
Formulation matters, she says.
Alcohol doesnt necessarily kill germs on its own.
but rather, will liquid chalk keep me safe in the gym?
So, think about what we need to do to stay safe.
Before we even think about whats on our hands, itsimportant to limit our risk in other ways.
When people are close together, everyone should wearmasks.
We need to do all of thatandremember to wash our handsand avoid sharing surfaces and utensils.
So, to figure out if your gym is safe, look around your gym.
Some gyms are holding outdoor classes that meet these criteria.
But many gyms dont look like that.
Indoor climbing gyms especially have a tough time meeting those criteria.
No matter how good your liquid chalk is, it cant protect against all those other routes of risk.
And then we get into the realities of how you use liquid chalk.
