Old News is Pitched Anew

AT Architectural Classics, we have known for quite a long time about the bactericidal properties of copper (and its alloys, including brass). We have written on it quite a lot … including the value of having traditional handles in the germ-swamp that is a public lavatory, the health virtues of having your home decked out in brass as well as the visual virtues, etc. Scientists worldwide have also known this for quite a while, as would you if you have been following the blog! However, the news truly is ‘new’ for the International Copper Association, strangely enough.

Reuters reports that the fact that copper may have public health benefits is actually a US finding (and makes it seem that it is a new discovery, somehow ;-)), and that the International Copper Association now knows something they previously didn’t about the metal that they have spent decades staring at, all day every day!

They International Copper Association recently pitched to have the metal replace the standard fittings in hospitals and health care facilities. This would create an enormous demand for copper … also driving up the price and making the International Copper Association a pretty (copper) penny!

Copper has already been proven to be an effective bacterical for infections such as e-coli, streptococcus and staphylococcus. Even the common cold has trouble surviving on copper for longer than a set period of time. Most germs on a copper surface are killed within 90 minutes … and not because all copper surfaces are so endearing that people just can’t help themselves, and simply must clean it, for the sheer pleasure of touching it!

One of the other benefits of copper for hospital use is that, unlike antibiotics and other disinfectants, it does not contribute to antibiotic-resistance in germs. Every time a person receives a dose of antibiotics, most of the germs are killed. However, due to natural genetic variation in the infections, some will survive. These then breed, passing on their antibiotic-fighting capabilities to their millions of sons and daughters. Copper is effective at killing a much wider range of bacteria than antibiotics (or even disinfectants that are applied to your hands).

The reason that copper kills bacteria is much the same reason that copper (in great enough quantities), or indeed any poison, like strychnine or arsenic, will kill a human. It interferes with their biological processes, and is not compatible with their normal functioning.

This pitch follows the International Copper Association’s application to have 5 different alloys of the metal registered by the Environmental Protection Agency in the States, because of its bactericidal properties. It is not a substitute for standard infection control practices  - for example, rubber gloves will not be replaced with copper gloves, bed sheets will not be made out of copper, and patients will not take copper pills to cure infections! However, it is recognised as an excellent way to cut down on secondary infections in the hospital. It will especially help remove germs brought it in by visitors.

And when they decide that they are sick of boring old hospital-style copper door knobs, we know where they can source some stylish, sophisticated and smart ones!

Photo credits: Changi General Hospital by Jerry Wong