Should care homes use antimicrobial additives?

It has long been known that silver has some special natural properties when it comes to infection control. As long ago as 3000 years, silver jugs were being used for storing liquids such as water and wine; the ancient Greeks and Romans knew that wine, water and oil would last for longer if placed in vessels made from silver. 

In addition, silver in the form of colloidal silver, a clear or yellowish liquid with microscopic silver ions, was used by the Egyptians to treat a number of ailments. The Romans and the Greeks also used this liquid to prevent infection and in 400 BC, Hippocrates prescribed colloidal silver to treat skin diseases and gastrointestinal upsets 

During the Middle Ages it was noted that wealthier individuals seldom developed the illnesses that affected the poor, which may have been because wealthier people often used silver utensils for dining and drank from silver glasses. This over use of silver led to the development of a slightly blue skin tone in wealthier people and the use of the term ‘blue bloods’ to describe this group.