OK - Ive done the research, phoned GP’s, friends in the medical
profesion, AID’s Hotlines and everything else.
-
The HIV virus will not last very long out of the body and
certainly not on an earwire. Alcohol is sifficient to kill it off
anyway -
Some other bacteria may last on earwires for a time. Hepatitis,
for example. This will also be killed off with alcohol or a strong
bacterioside such as dettol or listerine. -
Bleach is very effective. If you sell stones that are treated with
dye this may cause discoloration (“oiled” emeralds, dyed turquoise
etc.) -
A few, rare, weird bacteria may be able to survuve in pure alcohol
- but not for long.
5)Those medically qualified people who have written saying that
alcohp; is not a sufficient cleaner for surfaces are quite correct.
Alcohol evaporates rapidly from surfaces and will not be sufficient.
Dropping an earing into pure alcohol will be.
So the reccomendations I have form practicing theatre nurses,
surgeons and HIV experts is.
-
Drop the earing into a container of pure alcohol (rubbing alcohol
will do as long as it’s not adulterated with water.) -
Leave it there for 3 or four minutes
-
dry it using a clean, new tissue, discard the alcohol.
If you are using material that has been dyed you may find that the
alcohol dissolves the dye.
This is as informed an opinion as I can offer.
Tony