Argent Colloidal: What are the indications and how to use it?
It is an ancestral remedy that is coming back into 2022: how to use argent colloidal properly? What are the risks? Here is an overview.
What is colloidal argent?
Argent is a "natural remedy" that was already used in Mesopotamia, more than 6000 years ago. Frequently used in Greek and Roman antiquity, silver is notably hailed for its benefits by Hippocrates, Gabor (Jabir Ibn Hayyan), Avicenna (Ibn Sīnā) or even Paracelsus.
Concretely, what are we talking about?
Colloidal argent comes in the form of a liquid, consisting of silver nanoparticles suspended in pure water. These very fine particles are generally concentrated between 5 and 20 milligrams per liter.
What benefits?
Two studies (published in June 2013 and March 2014) confirm what ancient doctors already knew: argent has antibacterial properties, especially against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus.
Moreover, in France, silver nanoparticles are now used in the food (food packaging, refrigerator inner linings), textile (clothing and bedding) and cosmetic and hygiene products (toothbrushes, straightening irons, disinfectant sprays...) sectors: they are mainly used for their antibacterial and antifungal properties.
How to (properly) use argent colloidal?
Attention: argent colloidal must be used exclusively by cutaneous way, i.e. in application on the skin. The main indications are the following:
- Eczema,
- Superficial burns,
- Superficial cuts,
- Insect bites (mosquitoes),
- Acne,
- Warts (feet, hands, face),
- Cutaneous mycoses,
- Psoriasis,
- Sunburns,
- Ringworm,
- Wounds in the process of healing.
How to use:
Apply argent colloidal with a cotton pad or a sterile compress directly on the skin (or spray on the area), 2 to 3 times a day.
Caution : for pregnant and/or breast-feeding women, babies and children, as well as people suffering from a thyroid disorder (hypo- or hyperthyroidism, for example), it is necessary to ask for medical advice - from your doctor - before use.
Argent Colloidal: never for internal use!
In 1999, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) estimated that the food supplements containing argent colloidal could not be recognized as "safe and effective".
In France, the Direction Générale de la Concurrence, de la Consommation et de la Répression des Fraudes (DGCCRF) recalled in 2004 that "silver, cobalt, lithium, nickel, gold [and] sulfur" were "not authorized" in the composition of food supplements marketed on the territory, in accordance with a European directive issued in 2002.
For its part, the Anses "recalls that silver is not included in the list of minerals that can be used in the manufacture of food supplements, whether in nanoparticulate form or not.
What are the risks? When used internally, argent colloidal can cause severe side effects:
- Argyrism is a condition caused by excessive ingestion of silver: it is characterized by a change in skin color, which takes on a bluish hue. Treated for many years with colloidal silver, Paul Karason was nicknamed "the blue man": he died in 2013 at the age of 62.
- Argent colloidal in internal use can also lead to drug interactions, particularly with certain treatments intended to treat thyroid disorders (thyroxine) or with certain antibiotics.
- Work published in 2015 suggests that silver (when used internally) may promote the development of anemia (i.e.: iron deficiency).
Please note: In the United States, the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) reminds us that silver is not an essential mineral for the body - so there is no such thing as "silver deficiency"!
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Sources:
National Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health Safety (Anses)
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM)
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)
Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Marie-Pierre Taurel, naturopath in Toulouse