An indicator for sterilization comprising an indication chemical which is useful in
plasma sterilization with the use of
hydrogen peroxide; and a packaging material for sterilization which has an indication unit comprising the above indicator for sterilization and in which a substance to be subjected to a
plasma sterilization treatment is packaged. The above-described indicator for sterilization contains (A) one or more compounds selected from the group consisting of adsorption indication chemicals and chelate
titration /
metal indication chemicals and (B) an organic
metal compound and shows an irreversible color change at a high speed. Thus, it enables definite judgment whether or not a subject has been
plasma sterilized and, therefore, is useful as an indicator for
plasma sterilization. By further adding (C) a polyhydric
alcohol to the indicator, the color change speed can be elevated and well controlled, thereby giving favorable indication performance. The above-described packaging material for sterilization is a packaging material which has a part made of a gas-permeable paper or
nonwoven fabric and in which a substance to be subjected to a
plasma sterilization treatment is packaged. Since the above-described indicator for sterilization is employed in the indication unit of this packaging material, it can be definitely judged whether or not a subject has been plasma sterilized without affecting the sterilization performance.