After reading a few conflicting posts regarding colloidal silver I decided
to do a little research is a god-send or snake-oil. I confess that I
limited my search to computer databases (Hazardous Substances Data Base,
Registry of Toxic Effects of Chemical Substances, Medline and browsing WWW)
but I came away with a LOT of information.
xxx My initial feeling is that Gary Holowicki is essentially on target with
his claims that CS is a broad-spectrum antibiotic with little toxicity for
mammals. Silver in metallic form is biologically fairly inert, except for
inhaled or implanted silver. (The latter two cases involve physical
irritation and have little to do with silver's action itself.)
But, there are some points to be made. First, note that except for
elemental silver, virtually all other forms of silver are toxic...some
extremely so. Thus, contamination with *any* kind of silver salt is cause
for concern. Silver accumulates in the liver and spleen and is eliminated
primarily in bile. Thus, Howard's concern that a ferret with impaired liver
function may be at risk is probably valid. So, CS contaminated with silver
salts or treating a ferret with liver dysfunction may not be totally safe,
but I don't know that anyone knows how much risk that would be. (BTW, Gary
questioned whether silver poisoning counts as "heavy metal toxicity." Silver
is next to cadmium on the periodic chart and most consider cadmium a heavy
metal. I think silver counts, too.)
Second, manufacturers of CS all claim that it kills more than 650 types
of organisms. I'm willing to bet that this claim is true in the test tube
but not in living animals or humans. Some organisms may be able to evade
the reach of silver in the body. Blindly assuming that CS eliminates any
and all infections is probably wishful thinking but it *could* be part of a
treatment regimen.
Third, because CS was grandfathered in as a treatment before FDA
existed, it never needed to be tested for efficacy, toxicity or in different
species. Many of these studies can't be done due to the expense. Because
no patent exists on colloidal silver, no producer will go to the expense to
test it rigorously when anyone in the world can use those test results to
sell a competing product. Because of this, it's unlikely any *definitive*
scientific studies will ever be done to see if CS treats anything other than
infections. Any claims you hear otherwise are likely to be based on purely
anedotal information. They may be true or chance happening, but we may
never know for certain. Fourth, just a word of caution regarding
associating silver's historical use with current-day safety or efficacy.
Even if something has been used since antiquity, doesn't mean that it's
good. The romans sweetened their wine with lead acetate, Moorish sultans in
Spain slept on beds that floated on liquid mercury, ladies of a few
centuries past took arsenic compounds to give their cheeks a rosy glow, and
as late as the 1930s, people in the US were treated for syphilis by *giving*
them malaria. Because something was accepted or fashionable or a sign of
wealth long ago does not mean that it wasn't harmful. It always tempts fate
to assume that anything is 100% harmless especially if used in the wrong way
or wrong amount. Finally, in defense of pharmaceuticals, there are still
lots of cheap and effective drugs available. Newer drugs are more expensive
due to the cost of screening drugs for efficacy and toxicity, and because
microbes have this nasty habit of evolving resistance to all of the old
drugs, which makes outsmarting the little monsters all the harder. I should
add a disclaimer that I work part- time as a research assistant for a large
drug company. (I do *not* do animal research...even if I do kill an
occasional tree with the paperwork I generate.) And despite my allopathic
upbringing, I was surprised by what I've discovered about CS. Perhaps the
FML can help to amass more systematic information about what CS treats best.
It would be useful information for everyone.
--
Jeff ([log in to unmask])
[Posted in FML issue 1377]
|
