Created: Monday, November 12, 2007
A Closer Look At Colloidal Silver By Peter A. Lindemann,
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Colloidal or Ionic?
Another big controversy surrounds the question of whether this method produces "colloidal" silver or "ionic" silver. Most people have been told that colloidal silver is "good" and ionic silver is
"bad." Once again, the truth might be unpopular. The word "colloidal" refers to a condition where, in this case, a solid particle is SUSPENDED in a liquid (silver in water). The solid particles
are too large to be considered DISSOLVED, but are too small to be filtered out. This colloidal condition is most easily detected by what is called the "Tyndall effect", where a narrow beam of light is shined
through the liquid to produce a cone shaped dispersion of the light. The particles so illuminated also exhibit a random, zig-zag activity called "Brownian motion" when observed under a microscope. When
something is completely dissolved, both the Brownian and Tyndall effects disappear.
The word "ionic" refers to a condition where a particle has an electric charge. In the case of "electro-colloidal" silver, this
electric charge is ALWAYS positive. Silver will not form a negatively charged ion. So, the truth is that electro-colloidal silver is BOTH colloidal and ionic. It is considered colloidal because of the particle SIZE
and it is considered ionic because of the particle CHARGE. In fact, most of the biological studies suggest it is colloidal silver's ionic characteristics that make it such a good germicide. It is also interesting
to note that the old chemistry books make no distinction between the colloidal and ionic states of the electro-colloidal metals.
Purity of Silver
The quality of your finished product depends entirely on the purity of the water you start with and the purity of the silver you start with. Most of the current literature suggests that only 99.9999%
pure silver can be used. Most home brew systems use 99.9% pure silver. So, what is the difference? To find out, I contacted Academy Metals, a company in Albuquerque, New Mexico, that produces commercial silver. The
total allowable impurities in 99.9% (.999 fine) silver is 1000 ppm or 1 part in 1000. These impurities and their maximums are 1) Copper, 800 ppm, 2) Lead, 250 ppm, 3) Iron, 200 ppm, and 4) Bismuth, 10 ppm. This
product is readily available in wire form and costs about $3.00 above the market (spot) price of silver. When this product is used to make electro-colloidal silver at a concentration of 5 ppm, the total impurities from
the silver drop to 4 ppb (parts per billion) copper, 1.25 ppb lead, 1 ppb iron, .05 ppb bismuth. With all allowable impurities at these low levels, there is a reasonable argument for not being concerned. Still, sometimes
small things make a big difference. 99.99% silver (.9999 fine) has total allowable impurities of 100 ppm of the same metals in the same ratios, and costs (in wire form) between $50-$90 above the spot price of silver.
99.999% silver (.99999 fine) has total allowable impurities of 10 ppm, and in wire form costs about $250 above the spot price. 99.9999% silver, in wire form, costs more than gold and is very difficult to find
commercially.
In one sample of 10 ppm colloidal silver we sent out for total analysis (made with 99.9% silver electrodes), the primary impurities found were: 1) Sodium, 470 ppb, 2) Calcium, 260 ppb, 3) Manganese, 70 ppb, 4) Potassium, 50
ppb, and 5) Magnesium, 24 ppb. Since none of these impurities could have come from the silver, it suggests that the purity of the water should be of greater concern to the person making their own colloidal
silver, than spending extra money on purer silver.
Concentration
The concentration of silver in the water is usually measured in parts per million, or ppm. While this is the standard convention, ppm
is a "ratio" and not an indicator of quantity. When a laboratory tests colloidal silver for concentration, they report the findings in milligrams per liter (mg/L). Milligrams per liter is an actual
measurement of weight per volume, and therefore is a real quantity measurement. In the metric system, one liter of water weighs 1000 grams, and one milligram is one thousandth (1/1000) of a gram, so 1 mg/L is the same as 1
ppm, as long as we are talking about water. Silver weighs a little more than water, but the equivalence is very close, and the terms are often used interchangeably. With this in mind, we can calculate that
one teaspoon of 5 ppm colloidal silver has about 25 mcg (micrograms) of silver in it.
Dosage
In
1940, R. A. Kehoe reported that under normal circumstances, the average daily intake of fruits and vegetables would provide between 50-100 mcg of silver as a trace element. Since that time, the commercial farm soils of
this country have become extremely deficient in trace minerals. Assuming that our ancestor's diet used to contain trace silver, and that our diet probably has greatly reduced levels, there is a reasonable
argument for supplementing with colloidal silver. Two teaspoons of 5 ppm colloidal silver provides about 50 mcg of silver and could be considered a "nutritional" amount, if taken on a daily
basis. Any amount above four teaspoons a day or 100 mcg should be considered a "therapeutic" amount.
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