The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has updated its investigation and public safety warnings concerning fake sanitizers being sold in the U.S. Instead of ethanol (i.e. ethyl alcohol), the fraudulent sanitizers contain methanol which is an extremely dangerous chemical that can cause nausea, headaches, coma, permanent blindness and damage to the nervous system and even death. Methanol, also known as wood alcohol, is not an acceptable active ingredient for sanitizers. 

The labels of the fake products may include “FDA-approved,” yet the FDA doesn’t approve sanitizers. Some of these bootlegs have extravagant claims such as 24-hour effects or the ability to prevent COVID-19 transmission. Consumers that have been exposed to hand sanitizer containing methanol and are experiencing symptoms should seek immediate treatment for potential reversal of toxic effects of methanol poisoning.

Source: U.S. Food and Drug Administration