The Washington Redskins football team is protecting itself against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus, a potentially life-threatening bacteria that is transmitted through skin-to-skin contact .

This spring club repainted the walls and recarpeted the floors of the locker room at Redskins Park, the team’s training camp in Ashburn, VA, and then brought in Sports Antimicrobial System, Rochester Hills, MI, to apply a coating of SportsAide, an anti-microbial protection that is believed to prevent the spread of MRSA. Strains of this bacterial staph infection are now resistant to many antibiotics and are becoming prevalent among athletes from the high school to professional level.

The team hired SAS. which markets SportsAide as well as TurfAide, a coating applied to synthetic turf fields and a SportsAide fabric conditioner for towels and uniforms.

SAS uses a colorless, odorless product that creates an anti-microbial shield to attract the negatively charged microbes that cause MRSA. When the negatively charged microbes (bacteria) approach the shield, they are electrocuted.

In addition to applying SportsAide to the locker room at Redskins Park, the locker rooms at FedEx Field are also being treated. Other NFL teams are seriously considering similar measures to combat potentially devastating staph infections among players.