Japanese authorities have said that strong alcoholic drinks can be used instead of hand sanitiser in hospitals “when absolutely necessary”, reports say.

The coronavirus pandemic has stretched hospital resources thin in Japan as the outbreak worsens and supplies are running dry.

A health ministry document obtained by news agency AFP on Tuesday set out new rules saying that spirits with an alcohol proof of between 70 to 83 per cent can be used to substitute hand sanitiser.

Not many alcohols are that strong – some vodkas are, such as Balkan 176, which has an alcohol proof of 88 per cent and is the strongest vodka available to buy in the UK.

Traditional Japanese alcohols fall far short of the required strength needed to sterilise hands. Such disinfection products should contain between 76.9 and 81.4 per cent alcohol content under Japanese regulations.

Sake and shochu only have a maximum alcohol proof of around 22 and 45 per cent respectively.

However, some Japanese sake producers have started producing stronger alcohol products to meet the demand for the sterilising gel.

Japan has 8,812 positive cases of coronavirus and 131 deaths, with 2,446 cases in Tokyo alone.

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Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declared a state of emergency late last week, but has been criticised for not implementing adequate measures to slow the spread of the virus.