In Lesson #1 of your 7-part mini-course in colloidal silver and its healing and infection-fighting qualities, below, you’ll learn the basics of colloidal silver and its usage.  

One of the most serious problems that arise as we get older is that we get sick more frequently than we used to, and we just don’t heal as quickly as we used to.  If you think it’s bad now, wait until you’re just a few years older.  It doesn’t get any better, unless you do something about it.  

Thankfully, a very simple mineral nutritional supplement known as colloidal silver has proven itself for over a century to boost immunity, fight active infections, and reduce the frequency and duration of infections when taken regularly.  

And health authorities widely recognize its astonishing benefits, as you’ll see below.  Before we take a look at what the experts are saying, however, let’s first get some basic background on colloidal silver and its many uses...

Colloidal silver is a completely natural, liquid mineral supplement found in almost every health food store in North America. It is much like mineral water, except that in this case, the only minerals in the water are tiny, sub-microscopic particles of pure silver.

Pure silver, by itself, has been known for thousands of years to have powerful, broad-spectrum healing and infection-fighting qualities. So when the process for making colloidal silver was discovered in the late 1800's, shortly after Edison harnessed electricity, it immediately became a popular natural infection-fighting agent, used both topically on cuts, burns and infections, and internally as a remedy for a wide variety of infectious diseases.

Numerous medical studies were conducted on colloidal silver throughout the early 1900's, and the substance was used in hospitals and laboratories around the world, in a wide variety of forms, to help fight infection and disease. Studies documenting its phenomenal infection-fighting qualities were written up in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), the British medical journal Lancet, and many others.

Indeed, as far back as 1919, Alfred Searle, author of The Use of Colloids in Health and Disease, had written:

"Applying colloidal silver to human subjects has been done in a large number of cases with astonishingly successful results...it has the advantage of being rapidly fatal to parasites without toxic action on its host. It is quite stable. It protects rabbits from ten times the lethal dose of tetanus or diphtheria toxin."

How Is It Made?

Colloidal silver is made through a simple electrical process that pulls microscopic particles of silver called silver ions from a larger piece of pure silver immersed in water. These tiny ionic silver particles are held in suspension in the water by the electrical  charge on each atom. When ingested, these tiny ionic particles of silver travel throughout your body like any other ionic mineral before being excreted through your normal channels of elimination.

Over 100 Year Medical History

The simple process for producing colloidal silver was developed shortly after Edison harnessed electricity in 1892. It was then used for decades by doctors, in a variety of forms and under a variety of brand names, as a natural infection-fighting agent. But it fell out of widespread usage after the advent of prescription antibiotics in the 1940's.

Then, in the mid-1970's colloidal silver experienced a dramatic resurgence in popularity after doctors discovered that many pathogens were developing immunity to prescription antibiotic drugs, but not to electrically-charged ionic silver.  According to science writer Jim Powell in the March 1978 issue of Science Digest, "Thanks to eye-opening research, silver is re-emerging as a wonder of modern medicine. An antibiotic kills perhaps a half-dozen different disease organisms, but silver kills some 650. Resistant strains fail to develop. Moreover, silver is virtually non-toxic."

In the 1980's Dr. Robert O. Becker, MD, the noted bio-medical researcher from Syracuse Medical University, and author of the best-selling books The Body Electric and Cross Currents, discovered a distinct correlation between low silver levels in the body, and sickness.  He wrote that silver deficiency is often responsible for the improper functioning of the immune system.  Indeed, he stated:

“While analyzing hair samples and questioning the parties involved, I noticed the correlation between low silver levels and sickness. People who showed low silver levels in their hair analysis were frequently sick. They seemed to have innumerable colds, flu, fevers, and various other sickness. I believe that a silver deficiency may be the key to the improper function of the immune system."

Regarding the profound ability of silver to control infection, Dr. Becker wrote, "All of the organisms that we tested were sensitive to the electrically generated silver ion, including some that were resistant to all known antibiotics."  Regarding the safety of silver, he wrote, "In no case were any undesirable side effects of the silver treatment apparent."

In short, Dr. Becker had simply re-discovered what had already been known for thousands of years, i.e., that ionic silver – the active, infection-fighting form of silver -- is one of the most powerful natural infection-fighting agents on the face of the earth.

Controversy

As the use of electrically generated colloidal silver grew during the 1970's, '80's and '90's, the major pharmaceutical firms began to view it as a distinct threat to their sales of prescription antibiotic drugs, and began exerting behind-the-scenes pressure on the FDA to ban it.  So in 1996 the FDA published their intentions in the Federal Register to ban colloidal silver. This evoked a firestorm of protest from natural health enthusiasts.

After a three-year investigation during which the FDA could find no grounds to issue an outright sales ban, they published their "Final Ruling."  It stated that, like all nutritional supplements, colloidal silver could continue to be sold over-the-counter, as long as no claims were made for it in terms of healing illness or disease.  

If such claims were made, the claimant would have to show that he had successfully completed the FDA's stringent testing procedures for over-the-counter drugs, and had submitted the appropriate applications to sell the substance as an over-the-counter drug.

In short, the well-known infection-fighting properties of pure silver could no longer be listed on the label, or mentioned in the advertising, of colloidal silver products -- unless millions of dollars worth of FDA-approved testing was undertaken.  In the meantime, colloidal silver could only be sold as a nutritional supplement, and no health claims whatsoever could be made.

Many observers believe the FDA simply acted at the behest of the big drug companies to prevent the public from knowing about the dramatic infection-fighting properties of colloidal silver.  But in reality, they simply reiterated for colloidal silver what was already true for all nutritional supplements:  they cannot be sold as "medicine" that provides a "cure" or "treatment" for a specific illness.  All they can be sold as is “food supplements,” i.e., nutrients that supplement your daily food intake.

However, as news of the FDA's Final Ruling became more widely known, outrage among natural health enthusiasts grew. The perception that the FDA was acting at the behest of the major pharmaceutical firms to restrict colloidal silver usage, or to restrict information about colloidal silver usage, dramatically increased public curiosity about the substance. And the popularity of colloidal silver quickly soared.

Industry insiders estimate there are now as many as 10 million regular colloidal silver users throughout the U.S. and Canada, and millions more throughout Europe, Asia and the rest of the world.  It has also become one of the most popular natural substances used by missionaries and charitable organizations in Third World countries, where it is openly used to help control infections among the native poor who cannot afford expensive prescription drugs.

How Does It Work?

We’ll take a longer look at how colloidal silver works in another lesson in this mini-course.  But the short version of the story is that researchers have found that colloidal silver works against pathogens in three powerful ways:

• First, much like the mineral iron, silver is a powerful carrier of oxygen.  But unlike iron, when silver comes into contact with an infectious microbe it releases an oxygen "burst" which damages the cell wall of the pathogen in much the same manner as hydrogen peroxide would.

• Second, silver acts as a catalyst, disabling the enzyme that single-celled bacteria, fungi and viruses use for respiration and metabolism.  And it does so without harming surrounding human cells or tissues.

• Third, brand new research demonstrates that when tiny silver particles are absorbed through the damaged cell wall of the pathogen, these silver particles  attach themselves to the DNA of the pathogen and thus prevent it from replicating.  No replication means the infection can no longer spread.  

Ultimately, and in very short course, the silver kills the pathogens completely.  And additional brand new research out of Hebrew University in Jerusalem demonstrates that the pathogens that are killed by the tiny silver particles begin to leach those particles into the rest of the colony, killing other nearby bacteria in an ongoing chain reaction that continues until the bacterial colony is wiped out.  The researchers even nicknamed this process the “zombie effect.”

What Can Colloidal Silver Be Used On?

Here is a very short list of diseases against which colloidal silver has historically been used, according to historical medical texts (we’ll look at many more beneficial uses later in this mini-course):

Acne, allergies, appendicitis, arthritis, bubonic plague, burns (topical silver is one of the few treatments that can keep severe burn patients alive), cancer, candida, cholera, chronic fatigue, colds and flu, Pink Eye, styes and other eye infections, diabetes, gonorrhea, hay fever, herpes, leprosy, leukemia, lupus, lymphangitis, Lyme disease, malaria, meningitis, pneumonia, rheumatism, ringworm, scarlet fever, infections of the ears, mouth and throat, shingles, skin cancer, staph infections, strep infections, syphilis, toxemia, trenchfoot, certain viruses, warts and stomach ulcers.

(For additional comprehensive historical and current data on the uses of colloidal silver, see The Ultimate Colloidal Silver Manual, 547-pages, Life & Health Research Group, LLC, www.UltimateColloidalSilverManual.com)

Actually, by law colloidal silver cannot be claimed to "work" on anything in terms of its infection-fighting capabilities in the human body.  It’s not a medicine, but instead, a simple, nutritional supplement.  And it can only be sold and used as such, even though numerous clinical studies for over 100 years demonstrate its profound infection-fighting qualities.

So what about claims that colloidal silver is "effective against every pathogenic microorganism known to man"?  

While colloidal silver does indeed have some of the most broad-spectrum antimicrobial qualities of any natural nutrient, the assertion that it works against all pathogenic microbes is flatly contradicted by a variety of medical studies which have shown that there are indeed at least a few silver-resistant pathogens.

In other words, for those who may be using colloidal silver as a natural, infection-fighting agent, it’s important to understand that it will not "work" on everything.  Indeed, there are pathogens on which silver appears to have no effect whatsoever.  For example, The Ultimate Colloidal Silver Manual documents several medical studies that demonstrate the following eight pathogens to be silver resistant:

• Citrobacter Freundii
  
  

• Enterobacter Cloacæ
  
  

• Enterobacteriaceæ (some sub-strains) 
  
  

• Escherichia Coli (some sub-strains) 
  
  

• Klebsiella Pneumnoniae

• P. Stutzeri (some sub-strains) 
  
  

• Proteus Mirabilis
  
  

• Vegetative B. Cereus Spores

This is not unusual.  After all, standard prescription antibiotics such as penicillin might work on only a dozen or so of the 20,000 catalogued pathogens known to man.  And broader spectrum prescription antibiotics such as cephalexin might work on only 20 or 30 different pathogens.  So even individual prescription antibiotics are very limited in their scope and effectiveness.

But how many pathogens are sensitive to pure silver?  

The truth is, the answer is not fully known.  Independent medical research conducted by Dr. Larry C. Ford, M.D. (formerly of the UCLA Medical Center) is said to have demonstrated that pure silver by itself was effective against well over 600 different pathogenic microorganisms.

What’s more, research conducted in the 1970s on silver sulfadiazine – a silver-based cream used to prevent infections on the skin of burn victims – found that some 657 pathogens were susceptible to the infection-fighting power of silver.

If this number can be confirmed in additional research, it demonstrates phenomenal broad-spectrum anti-microbial killing power for colloidal silver that goes far beyond anything that can be provided by traditional prescription antibiotics.

Nevertheless, there are at least 20,000 catalogued pathogens in existence.  And scientists say there are tens of millions more which remain uncatalogued by modern science.  Therefore, claims that silver can kill all forms of pathogenic microorganisms are hyperbolic at best and purposely deceptive at worst. Such claims simply do not pass the "smell" test.

In short, while colloidal silver has historically been demonstrated to be one of nature's most powerful natural infection-fighting agents, there is no form of silver -- colloidal or otherwise -- that is "effective against every pathogenic microorganism known to man."

How Is It Used?

Regular colloidal silver users most often ingest colloidal silver orally. But it can also be sprayed externally onto cuts, scrapes or burns. As a daily mineral supplement, millions of Americans take anywhere from a tablespoon to an ounce a day of a standard 10 ppm concentration of colloidal silver.

Others use it only when they are sick or feeling particularly run down. People have been known to take as many as one to five ounces a day (or sometimes even more) of a standard 10 ppm concentration, for very short periods of time such as a week or two. Users claim that doing so will generally clear up a mild to moderate infection in only a few days, while more serious infections may take longer.

Many people put several drops of colloidal silver directly into their eyes to help eradicate eye infections such as Pink Eye or sties.  And many more use it in a spray bottle to help eliminate sore throats.  Some simply swish it around in their mouth to help prevent or eliminate teeth and gum infections. Others have been known to put a drop or two into their ears to help eliminate ear infections virtually overnight.

In accord with FDA guidelines, it’s very important to note that there is no evidence for colloidal silver's safety or efficacy when used in such a manner, as it has never been put through the FDA's rigorous testing procedures for sale as an over-the-counter drug.  Nevertheless, based on thousands upon thousands of anecdotal accounts, it does appear to work, and wonderfully at that!  

Additionally, experts warn that it’s very important not to continue taking colloidal silver at high dosage levels for long periods of time, because it is possible that long-term use of excessively high dosages can eventually overwhelm the ability of the liver and kidneys to excrete excess silver, which can in turn lead to silver deposition in the tissues, organs and skin.

This, in turn, can result in an extremely rare cosmetic skin condition known as argyria, in which the skin turns grey or even bluish in color due to silver deposits. (Always consult with a licensed and skilled health care practitioner for serious health conditions. Never self-treat.)

On Vacation? - Pure silver has been used for thousands of years, by a variety of cultures, for preventing water from becoming bacterially contaminated. The Roman Legions, for example, were said to have placed silver coins in their water containers during long treks into battle, in order to help prevent the spread of bacteria in the water supply.

Numerous studies have shown that very small amounts of electrically charged silver ions injected mechanically into city water supplies are effective at keeping levels of fecal coliform and other bacterial contaminants under control.  And silver is used throughout Mexico and other Latin American countries to disinfect and/or decontaminate the local drinking water supply.  It’s even been used to disinfect water by NASA on the Space Shuttle, and by the Russian space program on their manned space flights.  

Because of this, many travelers use colloidal silver to help keep drinking water free of harmful bacterial contamination while on vacation. Others use it in their emergency water storage programs for the same purpose.  Users frequently claim that adding one or two ounces of colloidal silver per gallon is all that's needed to keep drinking water from becoming bacterially contaminated, or to kill existing bacterial contamination.

Additionally, many colloidal silver users swear by colloidal silver for use as an antidote for food poisoning, both at home and while traveling out of the country. Some users suggest that during instances of food poisoning, taking one ounce of colloidal silver every 10 minutes throughout the day until symptoms subside is an effective nutritional remedy.

(We remind readers that under FDA guidelines there is no evidence for silver's safety or efficacy when used in such a manner, as it has never been put through the FDA's rigorous testing procedures for sale as an over-the-counter drug. You should always consult immediately with a licensed and skilled health care practitioner for serious health conditions. Never self-treat.)

Is Colloidal Silver Safe to Use?

It’s important to understand that when the Dartmouth University researchers studied silver in order to determine whether or not it was safe or toxic in humans, this is what they concluded:

"Trace amounts of silver are in the bodies of all humans and animals. We normally take in between 70 and 88 micrograms of silver a day, half of that amount from our diet. Humans have evolved with efficient methods of dealing with that intake, however. Over 99 percent is readily excreted from the body. Is silver harmful to humans? Unlike other metals such as lead and mercury, silver is not toxic to humans and is not known to cause cancer, reproductive or neurological damage, or other chronic adverse effects."

-- Dartmouth University Toxic Metals Research Program

Or as Dr. Herbert Slavin, M.D., Director of the Institute of Advanced Medicine in Lauderhill Florida has put it, "Few things in life are as cut-and-dried as the fact that silver is completely safe when used within normal limits…Ionic silver is entirely non-toxic to the body."

And as Dr. Jeffrey Blumer, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Center for Drug Research and former director of the Greater Cleveland Poison Control Center has stated, "Common substances like table salt and aspirin are harmless with normal use, but excessive intake can become toxic and even life-threatening. With normal responsible usage, silver supplements are entirely harmless to humans."

As Byron Richards, CCN (Board Certified Clinical Nutritionist, charter member of the International Association of Clinical Nutritionists has stated, “…the antibiotic properties of silver are quite potent – and the risk to human health in terms of toxicity is negligible. [Silver has] a far better risk/benefit profile than commonly used antibiotics."

And as Dr. Ron Leavitt, Ph.D., Professor of Microbiology at Brigham Young University has stated, regarding his own clinical studies of colloidal silver, "The data suggests that with the low toxicity associated with colloidal silver, in general, and the broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity of this colloidal silver preparation, this preparation may be effectively used as an alternative to antibiotics."

Of course, no substance on the face of the earth is completely safe if used abusively. Even common nutritional supplements can be harmful when used outside of the bounds of common sense. For example:

• Abusive use of iron supplements can, over long periods of time, result in cirrhosis of the liver and heart failure.

• Abusive use of calcium over long periods of time can result in kidney malfunction, calcification of soft tissue within the body, cellular toxicity and impaired immune function.

• Abusive use of vitamin A over long periods of time can result in muscle pain, fatigue, irritability, depression, schizophrenia, fever, liver damage and anemia.

• Abusive use of selenium over long periods of time can result in nervous system damage.

None of those side effects justify being afraid to use the substances mentioned. Why? Because the key phrase involved in each one is "abusive use."  When used in moderation, these substances are not only benign, but extremely beneficial to one’s health and well-being.  But when used to dramatic excess, they can cause potentially serious health consequences if the abusive use continues over long periods of time.

It’s exactly the same with colloidal silver.  If you use it in moderation and with common sense, it’s generally considered to be completely harmless.  Thousands of experiential accounts (and tens of millions of bottles of colloidal silver sold annually, worldwide) suggest you can use it on a regular daily basis if you choose to, in small daily amounts.

Or you can use it from time-to-time on a strictly “as needed” basis in somewhat larger amounts.  We’ll discuss dosages in Lesson #4, which you’ll be receiving a few days from now.  

But what you cannot do is use colloidal silver in extremely high amounts every single day, for months and years on end.  Why?  Because like any other vitamin, mineral, herb or natural substance, such abusive use can result in problems rather than benefits.  

That’s why the very first bonus report I gave you was the Colloidal Silver Safe Dosage Report, which explains how to accurately calculate your regular daily dosage, based on your body weight and the “ppm” (i.e., concentration) of the colloidal silver product you’re using.  If you did not get this report yet, you can download it to your computer in pdf format by clicking here:

Colloidal Silver Safe Dosage Report