SILVER

Silver has been used since antiquity for its healing and preserving powers. The ancient Greeks kept their medicinal liquids (and expensive foods) free of contamination by placing them in the silver jars. Since the Middle Ages, silver was a staple for cooking ware and eating with silver pans, plates, and utensils. Silver and its salts have been used for centuries for disease treatment, one hundred-fifty years ago for syphilis, in the last hundred years for eye and nose drops, gargles, douches, and the recent 40 years topically for burns, skin ulcers, and impregnation into the material from which medical devices are made including urinary and venous catheters as well as surgical instruments by mainstream physicians.

Silver and its compounds have an electrical/oligodynamic effects that are toxic for bacteria, algae, and fungi and some parasites. The is typical for heavy metals like lead and, mercury. Among the elements that have this, silver is the least toxic for humans. The medicinal action of silver is dependent on the electrical aspects of the silver ion, which irreversibly damages key enzyme systems in the cell membrane of certain pathogens to include staph and the internal organization of some viruses.

Today colloidal silver is made in ultramicroscopic particles in a solution suspended naturally in deionized water by natural electromagnetic charges. This ultra fine 99.999% silver has a particle size from 0.0001 to 0.001 microns (1 to 100 ug). A red blood cell is a giant compared to this being 7 microns or 7 million times bigger! After ingestion, this metal enters the blood stream within 20 minutes and all over our body Colloidal silver can be obtained for less than $4 an ounce at health food stores. Or with equipment costing less than $100, one can make gallons of it for $5. Since it is light sensitive, the silver should be kept in darkly tinted glass bottles in a cool place. Plastic containers magnetize easily and the silver particles will stick to the sides. Also keep it away from magnetic fields such as electronics or motors since they will interfere with the ions, holding the colloid in solution. If placed in the refrigerator, the silver may fall out of solution.

Colloidal silver is predictably safe. As a pre-1938 medicinal it is out of the control of the FDA. In general, silver exhibits low toxicity in the human body, and minimal risk is expected due to excess intake. Argyria is usually benign and limited to blue skin discoloration. There are isolated reports of more serious neurologic (seizures), renal, or hepatic complications, as well as headaches, stomach distress, fatigue, and skin irritation. Colloidal silver may react with certain drugs, such asthyroid, and antibiotics (quinalones and tetracyclines). The reference dose, published by the EPA, is the daily exposure that is unlikely to incur a appreciable risk of deleterious effects during a lifetime, is 5 µg/kg/d; meaning 5 micrograms of silver per kilo of weight per person each day – about 1 liter of 10 ppm colloidal silver per month for a 66kg person.

In order to guarantee the effectiveness of colloidal silver, it is necessary to buy a product that provides 10 particles of silver per million of water. Do not consume more than a quart daily for safety sake. Review the label or the specifications in the literature with the product. It is essential to get this health supplement from suppliers that have good feedback from customers and the above specifications. Some products like American Biotech Labs combines oxygen with purified silver, which is said to disrupt the pathogen’s ability to produce energy even more and increases the bioavailability of the silver particles.

My opinion on Colloidal Silver is not as bullish as it has been a decade ago. There has never been a good randomized double blind study to support it in Evidence Based Medicine, but in my experience (Experience Based Medicine), it should be considered in mild infections when antibiotics are not only more expensive but more dangerous! It should also should be considered in hard to eradicate infections along with other therapies such as HIV and Lyme Disease. No doubt it is very helpful when used topically in wounds. Again watch the label for 10 ppm and 5 ng particle size and no more than a quart a day! My colleagues may not agree with me but to those that believe no evidence is necessary and to those that do not believe no evidence is sufficient.