This Isn’t the First Time People Have Looked at Metals During the Pandemic
Dr. Chin-Hong said the idea of gold and silver masks reminded him of the interest in copper a few months ago when people started making wands, amulets, and face masks out of the metal. Copper and other heavy metals do have antimicrobial properties, Dr. Chin-Hong said. In the case of copper, studies in the early days of the pandemic showed that the coronavirus lived on surfaces like stainless steel for days, he said, but that it only lived on copper for a few hours. Additionally, Dr. Chin-Hong said that the anti-microbial effect in copper is not immediate, and it does take some time before it starts working.
Nonetheless, scientists now know that surfaces are probably less important in covid-19 transmission, Dr. Chin-Hong said. (The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said that touching surfaces is not thought to be the main way the disease spreads).
