A team at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus has scientifically proven the disinfecting effect of liquid magnesium. They examined the product Secret Stuff Hygienic from Frictionlabs.
With the liquid magnesium Secret Stuff Hygienic you kill two birds with one stone. Firstly, it is effective against damp fingertips and secondly, it is just as effective against coronavirus (Covid-19) as conventional hand disinfectants.
If face masks and 80% secret stuff are consistently used in a climbing hall, the probability that the grips will be contaminated with corona viruses is quite small.
Ross Kedl, professor of immunology at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
Good news for climbers as well as climbing halls
The operating concepts of many European climbing halls have stipulated the regular use of hand disinfectants since the outbreak of the corona pandemic. The rule that applies is that you have to disinfect your hands before and after every route or boulder. The reality then usually looked different: Hardly anyone carried a bottle of disinfectant from one boulder to the next.
On the other hand, liquid magnesium was seen much more frequently. But: Common liquid magnesium has a low alcohol content and therefore only has a limited effect against viruses and bacteria.
Special liquid magnesium developed
The American magnesium manufacturer Frictionlabs was confronted with this problem - and acted. Climbing hall operators expressed concern that they could not comply with the hygiene regulations. In Switzerland, during the first corona wave in spring 2020, there was even a discussion about disinfecting the handles on a daily basis. But this was - rightly - rejected by the climbing gyms as not feasible. Consider how many holds a climbing hall has screwed on!
We all wanted to go back to the climbing gym - so we developed the most hygienic liquid magnesium on the market.
Frictionlabs
The challenge of indoor climbing in the United States was the same as here in Europe. And so the boys and girls from Frictionlabs started elsewhere: They set about developing a new product. The result is the liquid magnesium Secret Stuff Hygienic with an alcohol content of 80%.
CBS Denver TV station on Frictionlabs Secret Stuff Hygienic
In a very short time, the idea turned into a finished product that was advertised with the label “most hygienic chalk”. That called the passionate climber and immunology professor Ross Kedl on the scene. He wanted to get to the bottom of the matter and examined Secret Stuff Hygienic in the laboratory.
Secret Stuff Hygienic vs. Hand Sanitizer
Ross examined the antibacterial as well as the antiviral effects of Secret Stuff Hygienic. The antibacterial activity of Secret Stuff was tested on petri dishes. Half of the petri dishes contained swabs from untreated hands on which bacteria grew in robust colonies. The other half contained swabs from hands treated with Secret Stuff.
The result: no microorganisms grew. In fact, Secret Stuff was as good or better than traditional hand sanitizer used as a control on separate plates.
Also effective against SARS-CoV-2
A similar experiment was conducted to investigate the antiviral effects of Secret Stuff. Instead of using hands, SARS-CoV-2 grown in the laboratory was dabbed on a plastic surface to see how quickly the virus reproduced. The virus on the surfaces was again treated with Secret Stuff Hygienic and a laboratory disinfectant.
The result: After five minutes of exposure to Secret Stuff Hygienic, the reproduction of the viruses was eliminated - and thus performed just as well as a conventional disinfectant.
The Liquid Magnesium Secret Stuff Hygienic from Frictionlabs is at Bächli Bergsport in the online shop as well as in all branches (check availability online).
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Credits: Cover picture Frictionlabs