> I'm guessing people might be busy with the holidays right now, but I > need some information quickly. Do any of you good folks have access to > studies showing that colloidal silver does NOT kill beneficial bacteria?
Dear Nenah, I won't be able to give you any scholarly citations, but I'll happily recap the consensus opinion... As far as we know, silver will kill any bacterium, regardless of cell morphology, if it gets into contact with it. The only known exceptions to this are strains of bacteria that have been detected near silver deposits in the ground -- and *they* lose their adaptation to high-silver environments within a very few generations of removal from those conditions. It's not a true resistance. The important word in the first paragraph is, 'contact.' The silver has to be able to reach the pathogen in order to kill it. In a liquid medium, silver performs superbly against all types, while in a solid or semi-solid medium, kill rates and percentages will be much lower to negligible unless very large amounts are used. An example of this was early confusion over why agar-plate tests tended to show spotty results. When the tests were repeated using nutrient broth as a medium, silver performance was consistently superb. The idea that silver spares "good bacteria" is, I believe, an attempt to explain observed performance that falls short of identifying the actual mechanism of action... The intestines and colon are filled with faeces that is generally not in a liquid state. Mobility is normally low. Silver that makes it into the gut, either passing through without having been absorbed, or being excreted via the liver, does not have the opportunity to reach the entire volume of the medium and tends to kill at much lower rates. On the other hand, in conditions such as food poisoning or dysintery, when bowel contents are in fact liquid, one can achieve very good kill rates and overall performance, resulting in a rapid cure. I can personally attest to the fact that if you take enough CS to overwhelm the friendly flora it *will* kill it! During one episode, I had been taking very large doses of CS for a number of days. I began to suffer extensive, bone-deep aches and pains throughout my major muscle groups, going so far as to threaten my ability to walk. When I discovered that my symptoms were identical to acute calcium deficiency and that calcium absorption is facilitated by the normal bacterial flora in the intestines, I resolved my problems within an hour or two by taking a bio-available calcium supplement. I then proceeded to rebuild my flora and fully recovered. So, when you're sick, with "bad" bugs in the gut, CS is able to get to them to kill them. When you're healthy, any reasonable dose of CS will be sufficiently immobilized in the semi-solid medium of normal bowel contents so as to be relatively ineffective in attacking the "good" bugs. Thus, you have the appearance of CS favoring one kind of bacteria over another. But, take enough CS to kill 'em despite the mobility issue, and the "good bugs" will be destroyed just as effectively, with the same potential for complications that always accompany the over-use of anti- microbials. I don't personally know whether there is *some* difference in kill rates between bacteria with different cell wall types, or any other distinctions, either, but I believe such effects are far outstripped by the question of mobility and ability to contact the pathogen. I hope that explanation is persuasive. Perhaps other members have some references at hand as well. Peace, Mike D. [Mike Devour, Citizen, Patriot, Libertarian] [mdev...@eskimo.com ] [Speaking only for myself... ] -- The Silver List is a moderated forum for discussing Colloidal Silver. Rules and Instructions: http://www.silverlist.org Unsubscribe: <mailto:silver-list-requ...@eskimo.com?subject=unsubscribe> Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/silver-list@eskimo.com/maillist.html Off-Topic discussions: <mailto:silver-off-topic-l...@eskimo.com> List Owner: Mike Devour <mailto:mdev...@eskimo.com>
