Natural Hand Sanitiser for the immune compromised

Today is International Women's Day. It's a day of recognition and to offer help for those who are struggling. For those of you reading this far in to the future, today is the 8th March 2020 and we're about a week in to the toilet paper shortage debacle (and I call it that because there's no paper shortage whatsoever, there's a distribution problem because people are overbuying and causing a huge amount of distress to people who are unwell and immune compromised and struggle to get to the shops as it is). Getting hand sanitiser has been an issue for longer than a few days.

The general population are rightly anxious about what's potentially going to happen with the coronoavirus over the next few weeks and months. They are panic buying and hoarding products like hand sanitiser that they would NEVER buy under normal circumstances. What this does is places a huge strain on the supply chain. The end result is tens of thousands of Australian's living with chronic illness cannot get a product they need each day and their lives are now at risk. This madness has to stop.

OUR FACEBOOK POST for International Women's Day

I'm doing something a little different for International Women's Day. I don't feel it's a day for self promotion, I feel it's a day to help, so that's what I'm going to do, in my own small way.

The whole premise of this store was set up to help people with sensitivities and issues gain access to products they need to protect themselves. I was our first customer, which is why the store is set up.

It makes me both angry and sad that on International Women's Day that there are mums who can't buy basic hygiene products because people are hoarding products they don't need to be hoarding and women are fighting in supermarket aisles for toilet paper.

I can't do anything about the toilet paper situation, but I am going to do something about the hand sanitiser issue.

I will reserve as much of our incoming stock as I need to for our regular customers who are mums (or dads) who have immune compromised kids or adults themselves that are immune compromised.

If this is you, if your health or the health of someone in your family is severely compromised without access to these products, please leave a comment here, tag a friend and put in a support ticket (green HELP button on bottom right hand corner of any page of the website) and you'll be put on a mailing list to be given first shot at the stock.

I will do my best to get as much stock as I can for the general population too, but right now, I feel the pain of those who are compromised and need to self isolate because of it and I want to help them before everyone else.

Like the life boats on the Titanic, women and children first

Our mission to ensure the sick always have access to hand sanitiser

In the 10 years we have been in business, this is the first time I have ever felt the need to ration a product to help incredibly frightened people. I also feel like it's the most important thing we have ever done here. For each delivery of natural hand sanitiser that comes in to our warehouse, until further notice, a portion of stock is going to be held back and only sold to those with immune system issues and chronic illnesses. We will do our absolute best to ensure that we never run out of stock. Existing customers will be given priority, but we will consider new customers too. We regret that we may need to ask for some kind of discreet proof before releasing the stock to these people. In a week where we have seen people fighting in supermarkets over toilet paper, there will be an element that will say or do anything to buy what they want. We will do whatever we have to so we save and protect this stock for those who truly need it.

About our hand sanitisers

We are stocking hand sanitisers from 2 brands - Lil'Bit and Dr Bronner's. They all follow a similar base concept - a minimum of 60% alcohol + essential oils + something to try to drop hands from drying out. For any alcohol based hand sanitiser, anything less than 60% is not truly effective.  The Lil'Bit is new to our store and contains aloe vera for the skin and methol for the essential oil. Menthol is around 40% of what peppermint essential oil is and according to the formulator, the reason for it being in the formula is that the oil remains on the hands and slows microbial regrowth which means you are protected for longer.

If you're going to DIY a hand sanitiser because you have no other option, you need to do it with isopropyl alcohol or a cosmetic alcohol that's almost 100% so you can dilute it a little with something on the skin and so the essentials oils safely disperse through the liquid. Vodka is around 40% alcohol and not appropriate. The essential oils won't stay dispersed in the vodka either.

How do I buy one of these hand sanitisers that you have saved for the immune compromised?

If we are out of stock of the hand sanitiser you're after and you are immune compromised, please email us (green HELP button on the bottom left hand corner of any page of the website) and tell us that you need help. Stock will be reserved whenever possible for existing customers who shopped with us prior to March 2020 to ensure an uninterrupted flow of stock.  If you're not an existing customer, we may not always be in the position to give you access to reserve stock. If you are not immune compromised, please show some compassion and do not ask.