In an emergency scenario, taking care of our medical needs is critical. A small cut on our hand can be an opening for a lethal infection that could threaten your life. Be sure to stock supplies that will take care of major injuries, but the most likely need for medical supplies are for things like minor cuts and scrapes, burns, sore throats, ear infections, and many other types of infections such as staph, bladder, sinus, skin, etc.
Recently, a lot of people have been look at colloidal silver – or nano-silver. We wanted to delve into some studies and information to help you know if colloidal silver is right for you.
What is Colloidal Silver?
Broadly, colloidal silver is made up of tiny silver particles suspended in a liquid. Most colloidal silvers contain ionic silver compounds bound to proteins. The solution is used for its antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral properties.
A new type of colloidal silver has silver ions permanently bound to the water molecules. This allows for an indefinite shelf life.
How Does It Work? Is It Effective?
Historically, many colloidal silver companies made unfounded claims that their colloidal silver healed all kinds of diseases including cancer, AIDS and the common cold. In reality, the benefit of silver solutions is found in the solutions that contain silver ions. Make sure your colloidal silver contains silver ions like these ones.
These silver ions have been found to be deadly to pathogens. In fact, research from Rice University in 2012 shows that a concentration of ionic silver as low as 16 parts per billion would kill bacteria.1
“The straightforward answer,” explained Pedro Alvarez, chair of Rice’s Civil and Environment Engineering Department, “is the insoluble silver nanoparticles do not kill cells by direct contact. But soluble ions, when activated via oxidation in the vicinity of bacteria, do the job nicely.”
Another study2 pitted colloidal silver against staph infection cells (Staphylococcus aureus) and found that 96 percent of bacterium were killed within 10 minutes and nearly 100% of the infection was killed off by 80 minutes.
Other studies, like one from Boston University, showed that by adding trace amounts of silver to common antibiotics, the medications became up to 1,000 times more effective at fighting infections in mice.3
How Do I Use It?
Most people use colloidal silver on an “as needed” basis. For example, many take 1-3 teaspoons of silver a day as an immune booster. A child would take a teaspoon a day. If you know that you have been exposed to harmful germs then you may take 2-3 teaspoons three times per day.4 It is best if you swish it in your mouth for thirty seconds before swallowing. This gets it into your bloodstream much faster.
Is Colloidal Silver Safe to Use?
There has been a lot of press about the improper uses of colloidal silver. The most popular story was about a Washington man named Paul Karason. He was creating his own colloidal silver at home and ingesting more than the recommended amounts. He was also using it as skin treatment daily.
The excessive, improper use caused Karason to develop a condition called argyria which permanently turned his skin a blue shade.
These reports scared a lot of people away from using colloidal silver, when in fact, Karason had been making his own silver mixture at home using salts to generate a silver chloride solution with large silver particles. That high-risk, homemade blend is far different from the majority of the silver solutions sold in stores.
The Silver Safety Committee, an organization consisting of doctors, chemists and chemistry professors dedicated to health-freedom advocacy, has created guidelines for the recommended daily consumption of colloidal silver.
The silver at the Ready Store contains, 10 parts per million. So, for a person that weighs 200 lbs, they recommend no more than 240 drops in a single day. (For reference, a teaspoon is between 80-96 drops.)
They also provide recommendations for the amount of silver you should consume based on short-term use and entire lifetime use. (link)
What’s the Shelf Life of Colloidal Silver?
You should also be aware, that not all colloidal silvers have the same shelf life. Homemade solutions have a shelf life of months instead of years. You should look for one that has a long shelf life and can be stored for years without any degradation.
Some colloidal silver manufacturers will guarantee a 10 year shelf for their bottles of silver. Some brands, like Silver Immune Booster, list an indefinite shelf life. This means that the silver will be just as good in 10 + years as it is today.
Is Colloidal Silver Expensive?
Some silver solution providers sell 4-, 8- and 16-oz bottles. They are a convenient size, but costly. It takes 16 8-oz bottles to make a gallon, and if you bought 16 8-oz bottles they would cost over $200. That’s why some prefer larger bottles for storage. We found a provider that sells high quality nano-silver in quarts and gallons at a much more affordable price, Silver Immune Booster. One can take the money saved and purchase other things needed like more food, another water filter, knife, camp chair, etc.
References:
1. Rice University. (2012) “Ions, not particles, make silver toxic to bacteria.” Obtained online April 2014 at: http://news.rice.edu/2012/07/11/ions-not-particles-make-silver-toxic-to-bacteria-3/
2. “Kill Time Studies: Antimicrobial Activity of Experimental Disinfectants”, 2013. Found online April 2014 at: http://silverimmunebooster.com/silver-immune-mrsa-killtime-study
3. Morin, Monte (2013) “Silver found to increase effectiveness of antibiotics.” Los Angeles Times website. Found online April 2014 at: http://articles.latimes.com/2013/jun/20/science/la-sci-antibiotics-silver-20130620
4. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. If you are pregnant, nursing or have any allergic reaction to trace minerals or if you have any chronic or recurring symptoms or illnesses, consult a healthcare professional before using this product.
What Do You Think?
Do you use colloidal silver? Comment below to tell us what you think and if you’d enjoyed using ionized silver as a way to boost your immune system or to help with common maladies.
~ Brandon Garrett
Brandon Garrett is a preparedness consultant and team member of The Ready Store. He writes informative articles and information for the ReadyBlog, the Ready Store's blog and educational section pertaining to topics of the economy, resiliency, and preparedness issues.
Full disclosure: Based on our existing relationship with The Ready Store, PeakProsperity.com will receive a small commission as an affiliate for purchases made through the Ready Store. This will not impact the price you pay and the proceeds we received will be immediately invested to fund new features and functionality for this site.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://peakprosperity.com/using-colloidal-silver/