http://wired.com/news/medtech/0,1286,67472,00.html
"A California company has figured out how to use two simple materials -- water and salt -- to create a solution that wipes out single-celled organisms, and which appears to speed healing of burns, wounds and diabetic ulcers.
The solution looks, smells and tastes like water, but carries an ion imbalance that makes short work of bacteria, viruses and even hard-to-kill spores."
"the solution, called Microcyn, may prove effective in the fight against superbugs, crossover viruses like bird flu and Ebola, and bioterrorism threats such as anthrax."
"Dr. Amar Pal Singh Suri [] began experimenting with Microcyn after learning of it last fall in Germany. Trying it on a severe necrotic wound of a patient whose only remaining option was amputation, Suri said he was surprised to see rapid improvement and the growth of healthy skin tissue."
This all sounded very, very much like plain old quackery ("ionized water" and the like are popular things to claim have magical healing properties), so I did some quick research about it.
Apparently this is bleach, produced in such a way as to stabilize it at neutral pH. Bleach is a well-known disinfectant, but the alkalinity of it makes it a bit less useful. So it does seem to work, but it is being completely over-hyped and dressed up as some sort of magical substance by the overactive imagination of some marketing department.
And we know Wired just can't get enough that shit.
Yeah. A chemist opinion:
""Microcyn™ technology is a pH-neutral, super-oxidized water that contains “oxidizing species” generated by the electrolysis of sodium chloride and water. During this patented multi-chamber electrolysis process, these molecules are pulled apart and ions are formed." In other words, ordinary laundry bleach?"
http://www.chem1.com/CQ/gallery.html
http://www.chem1.com/CQ/ionbunk.html
I've read it is less than 50 parts per million chlorine...so it's not the bleach effect that is doing the microbial kill here folks. Rumor has it that researches have tried to dilute bleach to equal the PPM of Microcyn, but when they do they lose both efficacy and shelf life. There's another mode of action at work here.
<i><b>INGREDIENTS</b>: Oxidized Water, Sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl), Hypochlorous acid (HOCl), Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), Ozone (O3), Chlorine dioxide (ClO2), Hydroxide (NaOH), Sodium Carbonate (Na2CO3), and Sodium Chloride (NaCl)</i>
<a href="http://www.calvetsupply.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=781"><b>Vetericyn™ Wound Care Spray</b></a>
Hmmm...since I can't use tags...
INGREDIENTS: Oxidized Water, Sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl), Hypochlorous acid (HOCl), Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), Ozone (O3), Chlorine dioxide (ClO2), Hydroxide (NaOH), Sodium Carbonate (Na2CO3), and Sodium Chloride (NaCl)
http://www.calvetsupply.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=781 — Vetericyn™ Wound Care Spray
> Hmmm...since I can't use tags...