Science Meets Scent

By Don Jurries

With the slogan “Try Everything, Stink at Nothing”, Massachussets, USA-based Sciessent is making a global effort to ingrain silver as the cornerstone of antimicrobial technologies. Marketed as Agion and Agion Active, Sciessent’s silver antimicrobial technology operates at the surface of a product through the controlled release of silver ions which attack microbes, inhibits their growth, and results in reduced odours.

I was given a polyester shirt treated with Agion Active to test at the Outdoor Retailer trade show in Salt Lake City, Utah a couple months ago. I finally had the chance to properly test the product during a recent camping trip to Adelaide.

The shirt itself is polyester, a fabric I’m generally not that keen on given how quickly it usually smells. I wore the shirt during a night out, then again twice overnight while zipped up in my sleeping bag, and finally back home while out on a hot afternoon mowing the lawn.

The underarms began to smell badly enough after the last activity to need a wash, but certainly better than untreated polyester. The results are similar to previous tests we’ve done on Agion Active in the United States.

More interesting, however, was to see how the Agion and Agion Active silver antimicrobial treatment was being used in Australia. I was very surprised at what I found. As expected, various imported outdoor gear, such as Superfeet Insoles have been given the silver antimicrobial treatment.

What I didn’t expect were companies such as Ozice using the Agion antimicrobial treatment to inhibit the growth of slime and odour-causing bacteria in its Ice Machines. I also found Agion offered by Perth Promotional Products in their retractable pens to inhibit the growth of bacteria, mold, and mildew.

Bottom Line: If you are going to wear synthetics as opposed to natural fibres such wool or bamboo, look for products treated with Agion or Agion Active. At the very least, it should reduce the smell.

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