Biodegradability, Toxicity, Legal and Commercial Aspects, Safety Issues and Mitigations, and Environmental and Health Impacts of Antibacterial and Antiviral Functional Materials
Poulomi Sengupta
Abstract
Harmful pathogens, including some viruses, bacteria grow very fast spreading contagious ailments among humans and other specific living organisms. As a result, chickenpox, dengue, diphtheria, hepatitis, HIV, and Ebola came up as terror to mankind. To combat these diseases different types of antiviral, antibacterial drugs have been invented and widely used. Antimicrobial agents are also commonly used in hospitals to restrict the spread of pathogens. In the past two decades, coronavirus-related extremely contagious diseases like COVID-19, MERS, and SARS flourished causing respiratory infections and spreading through air and surfaces. To restrict the spread of coronavirus, the urban population of the entire world started using PPE, antiviral packaging, and antiviral spray along with common antiviral and antibiotic medicines. This act not only increased the number of antibiotics in nature which may lead to bigger problems like antimicrobial resistance in the future, it also increased plastic pollution in the environment. The current chapter will discuss the types of antibacterial materials, reasons for environmental impact, challenges, and ways of mitigation in detail.