Q. Is it true that hand sanitizer can cause alcohol poisoning in children? Some alarming e-mails are making the rounds about this, claiming that some children have gotten sick from ingesting hand sanitizer. Should I throw my supply out?

A. It is true that hand sanitizer can contain large amounts of alcohol and can be toxic if ingested. But no, you don't necessarily have to throw it out, as long as you're sure it's going to be used properly and under close adult supervision.

Let's look at the big picture: It doesn't make sense to single out hand sanitizers. The average household has many toxic substances — mouthwash and perfume, for example, also contain a lot of alcohol, and there are many other toxic substances in the average home that a child can ingest, such as household cleaners, glues and hair dye.

So instead of focusing on hand sanitizers, parents should examine the home carefully for all things that can harm children if ingested.

Get down to the floor level to see all the things that children see. Until a child learns to avoid placing nonfoods in his mouth, he should be supervised, or placed in a restricted space such as in a playpen or a crib when not supervised.

Finally, if your child should ever need medical attention for possibly ingesting something, be sure to bring the bottle/container along. A single household product could have many different compositions that change over the years. We need to see the actual bottle.

Dr. Loren Yamamoto is vice chief of staff and pediatric emergency medicine director at Kapi'olani Medical Center for Women & Children, and professor of pediatrics at the University of Hawai'i John A. Burns School of Medicine. The Ask the Experts column is for general information and is not intended to provide medical advice.