Coming Clean on Antimicrobial Copper

In a world where science has led us to become hyper-aware of all the places that germs lurk and thrive, we as health-conscious consumers are constantly looking for ways to rid our lives of them. Science tells us there’s a solution right within our industry – antimicrobial copper.
In fact, ancient civilizations had promoted the antimicrobial properties of copper long before it was understood and validated by modern science and medicine. In 2008, copper became officially recognized when five different groups of copper alloys received an EPA registration meaning that copper could now be marketed as an antimicrobial agent. This is an especially significant breakthrough for the medical industry allowing them to start using copper in hospitals and other healthcare environments. Studies conducted within the past ten years have proven copper’s ability to effectively destroy microbes including e. coli, MRSA, staph, c. difficile, influenza A virus, adenovirus, and fungi. Over 99.9% of these are killed after just 1-2 hours on copper as it breaks down the outer cells of the bacterium, whereas they can survive for weeks on stainless steel surfaces commonly found in hospitals. Although it is expensive to implement anti-microbial copper in hospitals, it will allow for significant cost savings as the risk of hospital-related infection is lessened, meaning shorter hospital stays for patients and fewer resources used.
To find out more about the science behind antimicrobial copper, check out the following links:
Copper Destroys Viruses and Bacterial. Why Isn’t It Everywhere? – Vice
Metallic copper as an antimicrobial surface. – National Institute of Health