Colloidal silver is a very effective home remedy, but it’s best used externally and never swallowed as it harms gut flora. More recent research has found that colloidal silver harms the brain.
What is Colloidal Silver?
Colloidal silver is one of the most effective natural antibiotics widely available to the public.
What’s more, colloidal silver is cheap and easily obtained at many health food stores. Some people make it at home. It consists of tiny silver particles suspended in liquid for use either externally or internally.
The remarkable antibiotic nature of silver has been known for centuries. In the early 1900′s, the founder of Searle Pharmaceuticals, Alfred Searle, wrote in his book The Use of Colloids in Health and Disease:
Applying colloidal silver to human subjects has been done in a large number of cases with astonishingly successful results…having the advantage of being rapidly fatal to microbes without toxic action on its host. It is quite stable. It protects rabbits from ten times the lethal dose of tetanus or diphtheria toxin.
In the 1970s, Dr. Robert O. Becker at Syracuse Medical University began to intensively research colloidal silver. He discovered that silver not only kills bacteria, but it actually killed bacteria that were resistant to all known antibiotics with no undesirable side effects.
Moreover, unlike prescription antibiotics, pathogens do not become resistant or immune to silver over time. It even has the ability to eradicate antibiotic-resistant microbes like MRSA.
This is because colloidal silver doesn’t poison the microbes like antibiotics do, but rather smothers them by adhering to their cell walls and inhibiting their enzyme production.
Internal Use of Colloidal Silver
Despite its stellar reputation as a natural antibiotic, I never swallow colloidal silver and don’t allow my children to ingest it either. I only use colloidal silver for externally based infections such as swimmers ear. Others I know use it to gargle with as a strep throat home remedy.
My reasons are fairly simple.
First of all, silver is a heavy metal that accumulates in the body over time, the same as lead, cadmium, and aluminum. Why would anyone knowingly consume heavy metals?
It never made any sense to me which is why I have always avoided consuming any silver solution including silver nitrates, ionic silvers, colloidal silvers, silver chlorides, and silver proteins.
The claim that colloidal silver is the only safe silver solution has never been at all convincing to me.
Dr. Kaayla Daniel PhD writes in her marvelous piece Mad as a Hatter: How to Avoid Toxic Metals and Clear Them from the Body:
Although the mental and physical problems from metal toxicity have escalated in recent years, our very language tacitly acknowledges the historic toxicity of certain metals: “Mad as a hatter” from the Civil- War-era’s crazed use of mercury sizing in hat manufacture, “gold fever” from the murderous greed of early prospectors, “lead poisoning” as black humor for “getting shot,” and, more recently, “get-the-lead-out” exhortations from trainers who would have us exercise long and hard in order to sweat out toxins and melt excess fat.
Certainly, occasional use of colloidal silver internally probably does no harm. This would including gargling with it to resolve strep throat without antibiotics.
Why risk it when there are plenty of natural antibiotics such as garlic, turmeric, cayenne, manuka honey, and oregano oil (oreganol) that are highly effective and present no metal toxicity issues?
Risks to Beneficial Bacteria
While the fact that silver is a heavy metal with accumulation in the body that is difficult to undo (and yes, it can permanently turn your skin blue if you get too much which happens with some forms of silver solution) is reason enough in my book to keep the colloidal silver for external use only, the biggest reason of all is to protect the gut microbiome.
You see, colloidal silver works not by poisoning microbes like antibiotics do, but by smothering them by adhering to their cell walls and inhibiting their enzyme production.
While colloidal silver’s unique method of killing bacteria is highly effective and does not lessen over time as microbes do not become resistant to it, it is not selective in the bacteria it kills.
In other words, colloidal silver can decimate beneficial bacteria in the gut just the same as pathogenic strains. Isn’t this exactly why conventional antibiotics are so problematic?
Reducing the population in the gut of beneficial bacteria is serious business no matter what the cause …natural or drug-based.
Dr. Martin Blaser MD of New York University’s Langone Medical Center who writes in the August 2011 edition of Nature, warns against harming the beneficial microbes in the gut:
Early evidence from my lab and others hints that, sometimes, our friendly flora never fully recover. These long-term changes to the beneficial bacteria within people’s bodies may even increase our susceptibility to infections and disease.
False Marketing Claims
Some colloidal silver manufacturers claim that their product does not harm beneficial microbes. Even some prominent alternative physicians deceptively claim it does not harm flora.
However, this information is usually a ploy to sell product and ignores the chemical realities of the metal’s effect on living organisms.
Silver Kills Microbes Indiscriminately
Steve Barwick, author of The Ultimate Manual on Colloidal Silver sets the record straight about this false advertising regarding colloidal silver:
But the truth is, colloidal silver does indeed act as a broad spectrum natural antibiotic. As such, if enough mineral silver reaches the intestinal tract it most certainly can kill off the friendly (i.e., beneficial) bacteria that thrive there.
Colloidal silver simply has no way of knowing a beneficial microbe from an infectious microbe. If the microbe is sensitive to silver, then silver will kill it whether it is a beneficial microbe or an infectious one.
Proponents of small amounts of colloidal silver taken internally say it won’t harm delicate gut balance. However, I choose not to take any chances given that many food-based natural antibiotics work just as well or even better for resolution of internal infections. This article details the best natural antibiotics to choose from instead of colloidal silver when an internal agent is required.
Why risk it where your delicate gut microbiome is concerned? Colloidal silver is a broad-spectrum antibiotic.
Just because it wasn’t obtained via prescription makes it no less of a risk to your delicate intestinal health.
Contraindicated on GAPS Diet
Due to its ability to upset the delicate gut balance and harm beneficial gut flora, colloidal silver is contraindicated on the GAPS Protocol for gut healing developed by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride MD.
Certified GAPS Diet Practitioners trained by Dr. Campbell-McBride recommend avoiding the ingestion of colloidal silver. This is necessary while attempting to rebuild the gut environment with beneficial microbes and healing/sealing the gut wall to put autoimmune disease in remission. L. D. Moore, a practicing GAPS Diet Practitioner, had this to say:
As a certified GAPS practitioner protecting the gut is the highest priority. I am SO careful at what my clients ingest that may destroy that delicate balance. I put colloidal silver in the no ingest bucket.
Do you take colloidal silver internally? Why or why not?
Wouldn’t it be better to use plant-based medicines such as garlic that have no risk in comparison, don’t build up in the body, act as food for flora, and are equally effective?
I’m interested to hear your reasons for this as my research tells me to just say no.
References
(1) The Use of Colloids in Health and Disease
(2) How to Avoid Toxic Metals and Clear Them from the Body
(3) The Ultimate Colloidal Silver Manual
(4) Stop the Killing of Beneficial Bacteria
(5) Does Colloidal Silver Kill Both Good and Bad Bacteria?
Nope. We eat raw garlic in the mornings and black k fermented garlic in the evenings.
Hey Jina, what’s black k fermented garlic?
Hi Sarah, I have seen a person at a practice where I once worked with the peculiar blue undertone from consuming colloidal silver, obviously having done so over a long period of time. Incidentally, a homeopathic remedy Dulcamara 200 works beautifully for swimmers ear or a wet season causing a bit of earache. I’m not a homeopath, but have used homeopathy for my family for 18 years avoiding antibiotics with the guidance of a wonderful homeopath/md. Love your posts.
well i will still use it of the rare occasion that i do. good points ,all that i have thought of tho. good work
Hi Sarah
I appreciate the info. Just in the last year have I learned about using colloidal silver (C.S.) as a natural defense against pathogens.
When I get hit with cold symptoms, my basic M.O. now is 3-4 times a day to use C.S. spray in my mouth, ingest fresh crushed garlic, and take Oil of Oregano (OO) gel caps. The results have been phenomenal to stop the progression of a sore throat or head cold from getting worse, and healing quickly.
Of course, thankfully this is only a few times a year (1-3 maybe).
I used to only use garlic, which seemed helpful, but not near as effective as adding the C.S. & OO into the mix.
I was unaware of the things you mentioned in your blog regarding C.S., and will be much more selective about the times I use it.
I will plan to only use it if garlic and OO do not seem to be helping. Hopefully I won’t get a build up of silver in my gut, brain, or anywhere else just by doing that! And I will try the other herbs you mentioned.
And thanks for the tip of the swimmer’s ear. I will spread the news.
You’re awesome. Thank you for all your research and helpful info you share!
Well I guess I need to add this link as a disclaimer in my colloidal silver posts now! We used to use it now and then, mostly for external use with ear pain, but no one has had ear pain for so long we haven’t needed it. And a bottle I had in the freezer just broke so I’m out anyway. (I had some go bad in the fridge because we used it so rarely, so I started keeping it in the freezer.)
Thanks for this scoop, Sarah!
Kel
Hi Kelly,
I was a bit surprised by you saying your CS went bad. I have been making it for years….. never refrigerate…. just keep in a closet and have never had any “go bad”. It remains totally effective and helpful.
What told you that yours went bad? Very curious, to say the least.
Wouldn’t natural antibiotics like garlic and turmeric, etc also kill good bacteria in the gut? They aren’t selective either.
Actually they are selective. Garlic actually feeds good bacteria and is considered a prebiotic.
I think that may turn out to be a stretch.
We haven’t even identified all of the flora that live in the gut much less which ones are positively beneficial, and which ones are positively harmful.
Totally agree with you.
some of them may be selective but a lot of herbs kill indiscriminately, and I would not suggest herbs over CS
I so totally agree with you Sarah.
I worked in a health food store for several years and I tried to convey this same message to customers who insisted on drinking the colloidal silver and giving it also to their children and pets on a daily basis! When I tried to convince them that the Silver may also be killing off their beneficial bacteria they could not think past the marketing claims and false advertising which is typical of the industry.
Common sense anyone?
Thank you for publishing this information.
I know … I have witnessed this too … totally misguided how some use colloidal silver like it’s completely harmless. I often wonder if this is why some are trying desperately to regain gut balance but seem to not be able to accomplish this … because they are using colloidal silver which is undoing all the good stuff they are putting in. Common sense indeed!
Steve Barwick, the man used*
I agree with you guys that many companies do have misleading claims on their products. Most brands contain only 10% positively charged silver, particle sizes to big for easy absorption and elimination, and concentrations up to 500 ppm rendering their products inefficient. Not to mention many brands contain added salts or proteins…
I use bioactive silver hydrosol, brand-name Sovereign Silver. I’ve used it in my own body to cure chronic sinusitis caused by conventional medicine and severe strep. I also use it to support my immune system since I work with children and being sick is never really an option.
Hi Laura, Thanks for your response. If you don’t wash veggies; how do you know you are not putting harmful bacteria back in your body? (Not to mention pesticides if they are not organic?) Ie in my very liited space I have – I am currently growing kale and buk choy and a few broccoli sprouts; I used cow manure for fertiliser. How do we know we are not ingesting a bad form of ecoli for eg? I agree with you that herbs do kill off the bad as well as good bacteria. My Bio Dr told me that also; as I questioned using them instead of emycin. Others use berberine, oragano oil etc. In my case I had VERY high strep intestinal bacteria. I am trying to find ideas how to lower it dramatically other ways thus came across this thread, thanks to Sarah.
I so appreciate this and all of your wonderful articles, recipes, recommendations. They have all really benefitted me.
That was supposed to say “it makes sense” not “prince. I so hate auto-correct. I should know better to check before hitting that comment button! LOL!
Good point. I too have never consumed colloidal silver. Some how it never seemed right to me and now that you have raised the point that it is non-selective of which bacterial it kills it makes prince to avoid swallowing it to protect ones population of good bacteria.
Unless it’s ingested at unreasonably high levels, no gut microbiota will be harmed during internal consumption of bioactive silver hydrosol. The silver is absorbed into the bloodstream before it reaches the gut.
Then why do GAPS Practitioners recommend against ingesting it while a client is healing/sealing the gut?