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Apologies to the purists, but for clarity, the following terms shall apply:
(In the context of this article a particle shall be a complete atom, or group of atoms forming a pure silver particle)
(In the context of this article, a solution shall be used to describe silver in it’s suspended colloidal state, whether in water or protein)

Colloidal Silver

There is a lot of discussion lately as to just what colloidal silver is, and what it isn’t. Colloidal Silver has been used as an antibiotic in western civilization for over 100 years. It is recognized as an antibiotic, an antimicrobial, and an antiviral agent. It is still used in some burn treatments. It was common for newborn babies to have silver drops put in their eyes before the advent of expensive antibiotics and the companies that make them.

What’s the difference between ionic silver, and nano silver solutions? What are the side effects? What about the blue people I heard about? What is silver protein?

These are just a few of the questions I see raised frequently. Lets examine each question on it’s own.

Ions and Particles

To understand the difference between ionic and true colloidal silver, one must first know the difference between an ion and a particle. A particle is a whole element with a neutral electrical charge, it is stable and isn’t influenced by other molecules or atoms. It is usually ranges in size from 2 to 100 nanometers. An ion is an atom that is missing an electron, this gives it a positive potential , and it naturally attracts electrons from other atoms, and can easily bind to other atoms to create molecules. The ionic portion is a combination of silver hydroxide, and silver oxide. The ions constantly switch from one to the other while in solution. Ions repel each other keeping them suspended. True colloidal silver is over 50% silver particles.

That being said, most colloidal silver on the market today is a combination of both particulate and ionic silver.. These are generally created through an electrolysis process in distilled water. A typical Ionic Silver will contain between 5 and 15% silver particles and a high quality ionic silver will be about 12-18 ppm.

Ionic Silver

There is some debate over whether or not silver ions are beneficial. Well they are, But first let’s take a look at the downside.

Silver Chloride

Remember what I said earlier about ions easily combining with other atoms? Well when the ions enter your stomach they bond with the hydrochloric acid and become a compound called silver chloride, which is a silver salt.

What actually occurs when you take ionized and colloidal silver in a typical 5-15% particle solution:

The colloidal particles pass through the stomach wall into the bloodstream. The ions bond with the hydrochloric acid in the stomach, creating silver chloride until the saturation level is reached. At this point the remaining ions will pass into the bloodstream as well.

Without getting too technical here, (solubility factors and such), what happens then is that some of the silver chloride precipitates out. It flakes and settles in your stomach. The remaining silver chloride enters your bloodstream. Some of Silver Chloride in your stomach will be dissolved and be slowly absorbed.

The silver chloride compound in the blood will attach itself to the silver particles already there, causing the particles to grow. This isn’t an issue if the ionic/particle silver was made correctly. The particles will be small enough to safely pass through tissue, and be filtered in the kidneys. This process occurs with both true colloidal silver and ionic silver, remember a true colloidal can have up to 49% ions in the solution. Taken properly, ionic silver is not dangerous as long as it was manufactured correctly. The fact is that ionic silver is inferior to true colloidal silver as an internal agent when ingested orally. It can effectively enter the blood stream if taken as an enema, or as a nasal spray, bypassing the hydrochloric acid. It offers the same benefits as silver particles. Even when ingested orally, it isn’t totally without benefit…. the silver particles and some ions in the suspension do go into your bloodstream. There have also been studies that suggest that silver may lose some of its benefits without ions present.

Tissue Regeneration

Ionic Silver has amazing tissue regeneration abilities. It has been used in transplant research, and some burn units have bandages saturated with ionic silver products. Some people who have used ionic silver externally report healing with virtually no scar. It affects the DNA of cells and allows them to build healthy smooth tissue.

Like true colloidal silver, ionic silver is known to kill over 650 types of bacteria, viruses, and microbes. It makes a great household sanitizer and general external antibiotic, and as I stated before, benefits if ingested orally, and the same benefits as true colloidal silver if taken as an enema, nasally, in eyedrops, or externally.

Hydrosols

Hydrosol is another word that you will see often in ads and discussions about colloidal silver. It is ionic silver that has a reducing agent added. The most common is H2O2 or hydrogen peroxide. The peroxide reacts with the silver particles, producing 2 ions, silver oxide, and silver hydroxide. It then reacts with the ions it just made, producing a 2 atom silver particle+ oxygen, or water, depending on the ion. The hydrogen peroxide becomes plain water and oxygen.

This effectively reduces the size of the particles, and can bring the particle count from 5-15% to levels of 30-45%.
true colloidal silver

As we discussed in the section above, true colloidal silver shares the same properties as ionic silver to a degree. Both contain ions and particles. A true colloidal silver has a minimum of 50 % silver particles. This means that when ingested a much higher amount of silver reaches the blood stream in a much shorter time period.True colloidal silver is also made by a different process than ionic silver, and the silver particles are generally much smaller than in an ionic suspension. This usually gives them the advantage in actual surface area over a solution with larger particles.On the surface, it would appear that the true colloidal is the obvious choice for oral ingestion. This would be the case except that in some cases the amount of ions and particles aren’t that much greater than it’s ionic counterparts, and particle size can be misrepresented. A good silver colloid can contain over 65% silver particles and 20ppm.

Mild Silver Protein

Mild silver protein is particles of silver suspended in a protein rather than water.. They can contain huge amounts of silver particles. One company claims over 10000 ppm pure silver particles with no ions. This is because the protein is much thicker than water and can hold a lot more silver. The particles in many mild silver protein are usually much larger than in ionic or true silver colloid. Some are so large in fact that they can cause the particles to become trapped in the tissues where it reacts with light and turns the skin a grayish blue hue. MSP are usually used in very critical situations where a chronic situation has developed, or in life or death situations where a virus or bacteria must be killed quickly. A typical MSP contains from 100 to 1500 ppm of pure silver particles. Some companies claim much higher. Some proteins contain no silver ions.

Opinion

I personally feel that all 3 types have viable benefits. Mild silver protein should only be used as a drastic measure to benefit a chronic condition or life and death situation. As a day to day health supplement however I wouldn’t recommend it, especially a product in the 1000s of ppms.

The debate and double talk aside, I honestly think ionic silver is just as good as the true colloid silver. The one exception is oral ingestion, where you do receive more silver initially without as much loss in the stomach. However, if one is using the silver as part of a daily regimen, I think the point is moot. A good ionic silver delivers enough silver for maintenance on a scheduled basis. It also makes a great general antiseptic. If you need higher levels in your bloodstream quickly. The higher surface area, and higher particle count makes true colloidal silver the best choice.



Feel free to ask me any questions keavy@keavyscorner.com
I encourage everyone to educate yourselves about silver colloids and other healing options. There are some wonderful unbiased articles on the web.



This information has not been evaluated by the Food and drug Administration. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
This information shall not be interpreted as specific prescription or usage advice and is published as a general guideline only. If you have a medical condition you should see a physician. keavyscorner.com offers this article as an educational guideline only.
*The F.D.A. recognizes silver colloids as GRAS (generally recognized as safe.)