Going ‘pro’


Synbio Shield let us know about probiotic and prebiotic cleaning solutions – and why probiotics are considered the electric car of the cleaning world.


The accelerated adoption and mass production of the electric car in recent years was mainly driven by an increased focus on renewable energy and the required reduction of transportation's impact on climate change, as well as other environmental issues.


The automotive industry’s large-scale adoption of the electric car did take some time, but as we witness today, the entire industry is heading in that direction.


Similarly, the cleaning industry has long been searching for its ‘electric car’: a natural cleaning solution that’s not just eco-friendly, but Earth-beneficial. One that’s free from harmful chemicals and that cleans better than its chemical- based equivalent. A solution that has no negative health effects on its users and protects its applied environments from harmful pathogens, including viruses.


This ‘electric car’ is called probiotics.


Probiotics are good bacteria that provide health benefits to humans and animals. Most of us know them from yoghurts and how they help improve our health when entering our guts. In recent years, scientific research has led to the fascinating implementation of probiotic strains for new purposes such as Infection Prevention and Control (IPC), wound healing, dealing with respiratory infections, and much more.


The fastest implementation and adoption of probiotics outside the supplement and gut-health sectors has been in the cleaning industry. It may take a few years, but probiotics are forecasted to replace many of their chemical-based counterparts for most cleaning companies and households around the globe.


There are several valid reasons behind this shift to probiotics, ranging from its unprecedented environmental impact and protection against harmful microorganisms, to its low-risk levels to users and unrivalled cleaning abilities.


This shift to earth-beneficial probiotics is also pulling other industries along with it. Take the world of IPC as an example: it’s undergoing a paradigm shift in the way they are fighting Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), which threatens the effective prevention and treatment of an ever- increasing range of infections caused by bacteria, parasites, viruses and fungi.


AMR is the largest modern-day threat know to humanity apart from Global Warming, and the European Commission is estimating that by 2050 more people will die as a result of AMR than of cancer. It’s well known in IPC that disinfectants are having a negative effect and making AMR worse, and thus finding an effective alternative is crucial.


A series of live interventional studies in European hospitals has demonstrated that, by utilising cleaning solutions that contain specific strains of probiotics, they can not only


30 | COVID-19 AND INFECTION CONTROL


reduce the presence of pathogens (harmful microorganisms including viruses) by 90% more than conventional disinfectants, but also achieve a 99% reduction in pathogens carrying drug-resistant genes – aka Superbugs.


This is a big deal for organisations such as the NHS, because the implementation of probiotic cleaning through its hospitals, for example, will not only reduce Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI) and save countless lives, but it can also reduce the costs associated to AMR by as much as 75%, which can translate to saving millions of pounds per hospital.


In the current COVID-19 trauma, it’s also reassuring to know that a medical study showed that by applying specific strains of probiotics we are 10,000 times less likely to contract a virus.


If we take these health benefits and money-saving capabilities, and we look at how probiotics impact the natural world, we reach an unchartered territory. Being good bacteria, probiotics are not just environmentally friendly, meaning they cause no environmental harm, but they are Earth-beneficial, meaning they actively contribute to water treatment and the maintenance of a natural microflora.


Many water treatment plants use bacteria to break down solid waste prior to their release into our waterways. Probiotics start the process of organic breakdown before they even reach the water treatment plant.


Does being Earth-beneficial also have added safety benefits for its users and those around them? Many cleaning supplies or household products can irritate the eyes or throat, or cause headaches, respiratory problems, allergic reactions and other health problems, including cancer. Some products release dangerous chemicals, including volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Other harmful ingredients include ammonia and bleach. Even natural fragrances such as citrus can react to produce dangerous pollutants indoors.


Probiotics are completely safe for humans, animals and food environments. In fact, their product bottles don’t normally have a hazard symbol on them.


Having established their benefits in IPC, cost reduction, environmental impact and user safety, all that's left is to establish whether probiotics clean effectively. Without going into the scientific explanation of how they work (it’s a fascinating but not a very sexy explanation), it is worth noting that probiotics can clean better, deeper and longer than any other conventional methods.


When probiotics are applied onto a surface, they come in their millions and consume the food (dirt) available on that surface. This creates a pure surface, which is then automatically covered with a layer of good healthy bacteria, providing long term protection.


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