how does soap work if we put it on our hands and then take it off immediately? It doesn’t soak in like hand sanitizer
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I’m not an expert in this field by any means but this is my rough understanding of what happens
First of all, hand sanitizer does not soak in either, rather it evaporates due to the high percentage of alcohol, which also kills bacteria (and not viruses AFAIK).
Bar soap contains molecules that has one end that is attracted to water and the other that is attracted to lipids (fats). The lipid side will attach itself to the lipid surface of the germ and when you go to rinse with water, the side that is attracted to water will basically cause these molecules to rip out of the germ, destroying it in the process.
Liquid soap does not contain those molecules so, unless oral anti-bacterial, it’s really more to wash the dirt off your hands than anything else. Furthermore, antibacterial soap only kills bacteria and not viruses. I’ve seen studies where it was proposed that you do not use antibacterial soap because it could help increase the chances of antibiotic resistant bacteria developing.
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