TRU47 The Silver Lining

The adage that great ideas, products, and services are often born of out a challenge or a crisis to solve a problem or fill a need, rings true for an innovative USA based company, TRU47®. Such an AHA moment came about in just this way for this five-year-old enterprise focused on natural, safe, and effective wellness products made of 99.99% pure woven silver or ones infused with colloidal silver. All with the purpose of enhancing people’s lives.

In 2017, TRU47’s founder, Sharon Whiteley, started to feel sick after a great evening at a popular local restaurant. She thought it was just a case of mild food poisoning until she woke the next day and couldn’t walk. Off to the emergency room she went, a tad scared she admits. After assuring the doctors she didn’t have burst appendicitis (their initial call) she did accept that she may have contracted a bacterial infection. The medical team convinced her she needed to get on antibiotics which she reluctantly agreed to ingest knowing she always had a bad reaction to them – nausea and even sicker was par for the course. Sure enough, the next day she was nauseous and sure enough, felt even sicker. It was then she remembered about “silver” and it’s reported effectiveness in staving off viruses, bacteria, and fungi. This led to a year of independent scientifically protocoled research at a major university lab in Arizona and the creation of the company’s “hero” product, an ionically plated pure silver cloth called Stellarcleenz. Studies from that research showed that 8 to 10 robust wipes with the cloth – wet, dry, or damp – is all it took to inhibit the growth of pesky bacteria (studies are posted on the company’s website, www.tru47.com)

So, what about the name Whiteley is often asked. “The ‘47’ honors one of nature’s most noble elements – silver, which is known in scientific circles as Ag47. It’s renowned for its naturally effective antibacterial properties” she explains. “As for the TRU, all our products are “true” as to the integrity, care and quality that is behind their creation”. As someone fortunate to be very healthy, she added, her unexpected restaurant ailment was the calling card that led her to embark on a passionate study of silver.

It was a well-known fact, although new to Whiteley at the time, that over the past six thousand years, many civilizations had recognized the healing properties of silver, starting with the Macedonian culture. The documented traditional medicinal uses of silver started to disappear as antibiotics were introduced and the pharmaceutical industries started to evolve and flourish in the 1940’s. Silver is also reported to be a time-tested solution to many of life’s daily ailments; for instance, it is still used in wound care today. Pure silver is fast becoming more popularized and reported to inhibit the growth of germs, fungi, and viruses, as well as bacteria that can cause odors.

The world since TRU47’s first early days has passed – a time when leading disruptors like Dave Asprey of Biohack fame, and a major positive renown institution, The TED Conference, first featured pure silver woven cloths. “The pandemic has forever altered the state of the company’s world” states Whiteley. “We were here before the pandemic and will be here after the crisis abates; however, Covid 19 did inspire us to escalate our creation of silver-based products that would contribute to people’s well-being safely and naturally”. TRU47’s social distancing silver masks, scarves and face shields are among the company’s innovative and distinct product offerings.

What is unique and further distinct about TRU47’s silver products are even more timely today as bacteria and viruses are “smart” and becoming more pervasive. Many of the chemical and alcohol-based antimicrobial products on the market build up resistance after repeated use, as well as dry out and crack the skin exposing one’s body to vulnerable gateways into internal systems. Some companies try and get by this by saying “organic alcohol” which is hollow marketing speak. Truth of the matter is in essence all alcohol is effectively “organic”.

TRU47 today continues to innovate products that support people’s overall health and wellness, and not only with silver. Some of their masks and new facial shields also have Copper outer layers. Copper is reported to be an excellent antiviral natural element. With silver on the outer and inner facings, these masks offer a very robust covering. All TRU47 products clearly state they are “for social distancing only” and are not medical or surgical grade. A bit of controversy exists about the breathability and therefore bottom-line efficacy of some silver mesh Masks, their top seller, as alternative plain cloth coverings or disposable ones that are wasteful and environmentally unfriendly. This woman owned company, given we just have celebrated Women’s day and month, delivers on their caption they very often use – there is a silver lining in social distancing. Many of TRU47’s silver face shields and scarves are quite stunning when worn — and sparkly”, Whiteley smiles. “We do believe feeling pretty is a wellness benefit”. Therein lies our “silver lining”. ☐