According to a Commercial Product Report by silver-colloids.com, a site that provides detailed laboratory analyses of colloidal silver products, there are three distinctly different types of silver products on the market that are all labeled and sold as "colloidal" silver:
1. Ionic silver
2. Silver protein
3. True colloidal silver
# Ionic silver solutions -- Silver solutions are typically clear like water or have a slight yellow tint. The producers of ionic silver solutions will tell you that colloidal silver should look like clear water, but this is incorrect, so don't be fooled. The term colloidal means particles, not ions.
To determine whether a solution is ionic silver, add regular table salt (sodium chloride) to it. If silver ions are present, then the chloride ions will combine with the silver ions and create a white, cloudy appearance. For more detailed instructions on how to do this, please see the Silver Colloids web site.
Ionic silver is not entirely without merit, but since ionic silver products contain such a low percentage of silver particles, these products will not be as effective as true colloidal silver, which has a much greater particle surface area relative to the total silver content.
Ionic silver is still a strong anti-microbial, and can be effectively used in situations where chloride is NOT present. When chloride is present such as inside your body then what little silver particle is present in the solution will survive to produce benefit, but again, not nearly as effectively as a true colloidal solution.
Please be aware that most all "colloidal silver" generators sold for home use produce ionic silver solutions, and not true colloidal silver.
Potential Danger Low. If you take ionic silver products according to the manufacturer's recommended dosage, ionic silver will not cause argyria, a condition that causes your skin to turn blue-gray.
# Silver protein -- Silver protein products are the second most prevalent type of so-called colloidal silver products on the market. These products are a combination of metallic silver particles and a protein binder to keep the particles in suspension. One tip-off that it's a silver protein product is if it claims to have high concentrations of colloidal silver (typically in the range of 30 to 20,000 ppm).
Of the three types of colloidal silver, silver protein products have the lowest particle surface area for a given silver concentration, making the silver inaccessible for safe and effective absorption by your body. Because of this, you want to avoid all silver protein products.
To find out whether you have a silver protein product rather than a true silver colloid, look for these characteristics:
* Foaming: When shaken, a silver protein product produces foam above the liquid that will persist for minutes after being shaken. This is probably the single most reliable indicator.
* Concentration: Silver protein products tend to have very high concentration values, typically in the range of 30 to 20,000 ppm.
* Color: The color ranges from light amber to almost black with an increasing concentration of silver.
Potential Danger High. Due to the high concentration of large silver particles, silver protein products are known to cause argyria, which turns your skin blue-gray color.
# True colloidal silver -- True colloidal silver products are the least prevalent type of colloidal silver on the market due to the high cost of production. In true colloidal silver, the majority of the silver content is in the form of silver particles. True colloids will typically contain between 50 to 80 percent particles, while the balance will be silver ions.
Because of the high concentration of silver particles, true silver colloids are never clear like water. True colloidal silver with a sufficient concentration of particles does not look like water because silver particles -- even very small particles -- block light from passing through, making the liquid appear darker.
Potential Danger None. Due to the very low concentration of ionic silver and small particle size, true silver colloids do not cause argyria.
What is Colloidal Silver Useful For?
Colloidal silver has been known as a remarkably effective natural antibiotic for centuries. But in past several decades, research has shown colloidal silver can even eradicate antibiotic-resistant microbes like MRSA , the Avian Influenza (bird flu), and Human Corona virus (SARS).
In the mid-1970s, Dr. Robert O. Becker at Syracuse Medical University began his groundbreaking research into colloidal silver. He later concluded:
"What we have done was rediscover the fact that silver kills bacteria, a fact which had actually been known for centuries ...All of the organisms we tested were sensitive to the electrically generated silver ion, including some that were resistant to all known antibiotics...In no case were any undesirable side effects of the silver treatment apparent."
) colloidal silver would've been banned already. As the problem with turning blue, as I said, Colloidal Silver solution is available over-the-counter at Health and Vitamin Store and being used by thousands (if not more) of people around the world, How often do you see blue people walking around???
