A lot has been written about properties and uses of colloidal (ionic) silver dispersions and various bioactive properties of silver cations (Ag+). General public interest in the applications of colloidal ionic silver dispersions (CISD) is quite understandable, given their diverse uses, ranging from antimicrobial treatments and facilitation of the wound-healing process to odour prevention in shoes and clothes.
Unfortunately, most information available on the internet and in popular magazines is often outdated and sometimes even self-contradictory. Colloidal ionic silver dispersion (CISD) is often portrayed as a sort of panacea with no side effects, which is not true in reality. CISD treatment may exacerbate certain medical conditions and should be avoided in such cases.
Many scientific studies have been conducted on the topic of properties and effectiveness of colloidal ionic silver dispersions. However, most of them were published in non-English languages. Perhaps the language barrier explains why some laboratory and observational data are often overlooked and not taken into account.
What Is Colloidal Silver?
The name colloidal silver means that tiny particles of silver (Ag) are dispersed in the water, thus forming a colloidal dispersion. The microscopic silver particles are evenly distributed in a volume of water, preventing their settling. Ideally, silver particles should range from 10 nm to 500 nm. However, due to imperfections in the production process, a small percentage of silver particles are larger and can sometimes be seen under an optical microscope.
The concentration of silver particles in a colloidal dispersion is usually expressed in ppm (parts per million) and measured by specially designed laboratory instruments. The concentration of Ag particles in the colloidal dispersion can also be measured through the measurement of ohmic resistance. Measured values of dispersion’s resistance are nonlinear and depend on several physical factors, such as the dispersion’s temperature, its degree of contamination, the cleanliness of the test probes’ surfaces, and their relative positions, etc. The resistance measurement method is useful, but a crude method of measuring the saturation of colloidal (ionic) silver dispersions.
Benefits of Colloidal Silver
The composition of the colloidal (ionic) silver dispersion is probably one of the most critical factors contributing to its effectiveness. It has been found that the bioactive effects (benefits) of colloidal silver dispersions can likely be attributed to the specific electrochemical activity of the silver cation, Ag+. A higher concentration of Ag+ cations in the colloidal silver dispersion directly correlates with its effectiveness in medicinal and wound-healing facilitation applications.
Due to imperfections in the production process, most homemade colloidal silver dispersions contain 5–20% of silver (Ag+) cations. On the other hand, adequately produced high-quality colloidal ionic silver dispersions can contain 80–95 % of Ag+ cations, which makes it much more efficient and potent. To make a distinction between colloidal silver dispersion, which contains a low concentration of Ag+ cations, and a high-quality dispersion, which contains a high concentration of Ag+ cations, often the term “ionic” is added to the name – Colloidal Ionic Silver Dispersion (CISD).
A higher concentration of Ag particles and silver cations (Ag+) in the colloidal dispersion is desirable, as it enhances the effectiveness of CISD in the treatment of wounds and infections. However, when the concentration of Ag particles and cations (Ag+) gets too high, it reaches the threshold of agglomeration. In other words, Ag particles and cations (Ag+) in the colloidal dispersion are evenly distributed due to their mutual electrostatic repulsive force being of the same polarity. When saturation of colloidal dispersion reaches a certain threshold, the net repulsive force becomes too strong, and any irregularity in the distribution matrix of the Ag particles causes its instability and grouping of particles into larger clusters (“clumps”). The structure of such clusters prevents their electrochemical interaction with living cells, thus effectively rendering agglomerated CISD entirely useless for any medicinal use.
Agglomeration
Agglomeration is the grouping of particles into clusters. Agglomerated colloidal silver dispersion can easily be recognised by a yellowish tint of dispersion, which ranges from slightly visible colouration to dark yellowish tones similar in appearance to urine. Other colourations of the colloidal ionic silver dispersion are considered a sure indicator of contamination with foreign particles.
An agglomeration event usually occurs when proper production procedures are not followed, but it can also be caused by external stimuli, such as excessively high or low storage temperatures, exposure to sunlight, or evaporation of water from dispersion, etc. HSCISD with a high saturation level of up to 19 ppm is more sensitive to external stimuli, and even a sudden shake of the container can cause agglomeration. That is why CISD and HSCISD should be stored in closed, dark glass containers at a temperature not lower than 6–7 °C nor higher than 20–25 °C.
The Colour of Colloidal Ionic Silver
A correctly produced colloidal ionic silver dispersion should be entirely transparent, with no visible particles or colourations of any kind. When held against the light, ideally, the liquid should present no apparent visual distortions or reflections. One of the simplest methods for identifying colloidal dispersions is the Tyndall effect. The Tyndall scattering effect can be observed in colloidal dispersions by the scattering of a coherent light beam passing through the dispersion. In the case of colloidal ionic silver dispersion, the most straightforward way of using the Tyndall scattering effect is to point a laser beam through the dispersion. The laser beam is scattered, and it appears to thicken as it passes through the CISD. A higher concentration of dispersed Ag particles causes greater light scattering of the laser beam, making it appear thicker. Other factors, such as particle size and dispersion temperature, also affect the scattering of the laser beam and introduce nonlinearity in the measurement, so this method should be considered only a crude indicator of CISD saturation levels.
Properties of water used in the production process, and its possible contamination, might pose a problem because silver particles, especially silver cations (Ag+), readily react with minerals and other electrochemically active particles and molecules when they come into contact with them. As a result of such a process, various silver ionic compounds (like silver salts) are synthesised. Silver salts exhibit virtually no bioactivity and tend to accumulate in tissues.
Uses of Colloidal Ionic Silver
Two of the most interesting bioactive properties of colloidal ionic silver dispersions are their ability to kill microbes (and, generally, all prokaryotes) and to cause dedifferentiation of red blood cells into polypotent cells (stem cells). In both cases, saturation of CISD and electrochemical properties of silver cations (Ag+) play a significant role. Highly saturated CISD (HSCISD) is more effective than the regular CSID due to a higher concentration of Ag particles in the dispersion. On the other hand, a high concentration of silver cations (Ag+) provides a basis for electrochemical reactions with microbes and red blood cells.
Treatments with CISD and HSCISD often result in the death of microbial organisms such as bacteria, yeast, mould, and most other prokaryotes. This antimicrobial action is attributed to the inhibition of prokaryotic cell membrane respiratory enzymes, which disrupts their electron transport chain. Disruption of prokaryotes’ respiratory cycle by silver cations (Ag+) consequently leads to their death by “suffocation”. Since the underlying mechanism of microbial death is electrochemical by nature, it is virtually impossible for microbes and other prokaryotes to develop resistance to CISD treatments.
The effectiveness of colloidal ionic silver dispersion on viruses is still a matter of debate. Although there is some experimental evidence that CISD could be beneficial for virus infections, the mechanism of its action is not well understood. Currently, the prevailing theory of CISD’s antiviral properties holds that every virus, once it infiltrates a living cell, hijacks the infected cell’s metabolic processes to replicate itself. Metabolic processes of the “incubator” cell are thus changed into a form somewhat similar to the respiratory mechanism of prokaryotes. When such a change occurs, the infected cell becomes sensitive to the electrochemical action of Ag+ cations, which can then inhibit its respiratory processes and kill it. In that way, the infected cell is devitalised or killed before the virus can reproduce, and the viral infection is effectively prevented.
Perhaps the most exciting property of colloidal ionic silver dispersion is its capability to dedifferentiate red blood cells. Some of the earliest sources describing effects are works by Dr Robert O. Becker, who observed faster healing of wounds with less scarring when wounds came into contact with silver cations (Ag+). He managed to produce silver cations (Ag+) directly in the wound by applying a weak direct current to the silver electrodes, thereby facilitating wound healing. At a later date, it was discovered that silver cations (Ag+) could be produced in a separate process (CISD, HSCISD) and then applied directly to the wound.
Initially, the underlying process of facilitated wound healing was not well understood. At a later date, it was discovered that red blood cells dedifferentiate into a form resembling stem cells when they come into contact with silver cations (Ag+). Although fully developed red blood cells lack a nucleus, it was later discovered that they do contain a nucleus in the early stages of development, before final differentiation. It is probably those “immature” cells that bind silver cations (Ag+) and dedifferentiate into polypotent cells, although the underlying mechanisms are not yet fully understood.
Cells undergoing dedifferentiation redevelop their nuclei and become essentially polypotent. Stem cells produced in such processes accumulate into clusters which eventually become building blocks for new tissue. An accelerated rate of growth of various types of tissue can be observed virtually whenever properly produced CISD is applied to open wounds or burns.
Although CISD is somewhat effective as an antiseptic, it should be noted that the skin-penetrating properties of Ag particles and silver cations (Ag+) are virtually nonexistent. Penetration of CISD into the cornified layer of skin limits its use almost exclusively to topical treatments. The usefulness of CISD in the treatment of internal or systemic infections by ingestion is doubtful, since most of the silver particles inevitably react with hydrochloric acid and other stomach contents to form various silver compounds (mostly silver salts). Some theories have been proposed, suggesting that silver cations (Ag+) do not react with hydrochloric acid and are absorbed into the bloodstream through the stomach lining and intestinal walls.
Experiments we performed indicate that the electrochemical activity of silver cations (Ag+) is high enough to cause an immediate reaction with even just minute amounts of mineral contaminants in water. As a consequence, the synthesis of silver salts and other ionic compounds takes place. In my view, it is illogical to suppose that CISD and HSCISD would behave differently when they come in contact with hydrochloric acid and remnants of food in the stomach.
Colloidal Ionic Silver and Cancer
Another controversial topic concerns the properties and potential uses of colloidal ionic silver dispersion in the treatment of (topic) neoplasms, such as tumours and cancer. Although there is no known mechanism by which CISD could affect tumours or cancer cells, some reports indicate possible beneficial effects in some cases of topical neoplastic diseases (various skin tumours and cancers). It must be noted that in most of such cases CISD was used only as supplemental treatment rather than primary one, so there is no real way of knowing if CISD did affect neoplasms or was it just a coincidence or even a placebo effect.
One could speculate that treatments with colloidal ionic silver dispersions cure visible or occult secondary infections of neoplasm and surrounding tissues. By curing secondary infections, some of the resources previously occupied by the immune system would be available to attack neoplastic cells. Furthermore, areas infected with microbes and yeast often exhibit a decrease in pH, which provides neoplastic cells with a more suitable growth medium. By curing the infections, the pH of the surrounding medium should at least slightly rise toward alkalinity, thus providing an environment less suitable for the development and growth of the neoplasm.
Given that the genesis of some neoplastic diseases has been linked to viral and yeast infections, it is possible that some of the observed beneficial effects could be attributed to the (possible) antiviral and antimicrobial properties of CISD.
Side Effects of Taking Colloidal Ionic Silver
Although some sources advocate treatment of neoplastic diseases with CISD, I would strongly advise against any such action. What makes me wary of such treatments is that when silver cations (Ag+) come into contact with red blood cells, they induce dedifferentiation, effectively transforming them into a sort of polypotent cell (stem cell). The reason why CISD should not be used for the treatment of neoplastic diseases is that stem cells are known sometimes to exacerbate neoplastic diseases and could lead to an acceleration of a tumour and cancer growth or their metastasising. That is also the main reason why conventional stem cell therapy is contraindicated in patients with neoplastic disease.
There have been reports from the 1930s and ’40s of experimental treatments using intravenous and intramuscular injections to deliver CISD (perhaps HSCISD as well) directly to the infection foci. While such an approach to CISD treatments seems logical, there is always a question of possible side effects that might result from them. Unfortunately, historical data on intravenous and intramuscular use of colloidal ionic silver dispersion is scarce and incomplete, and I am not aware of any ongoing research on this topic.
That said, some of the properties of CISD and HSCISD reported in the literature and by users also seemed illogical and perhaps impossible, only to be proven real and explained later. I hope that future research and experimental data will provide a more definitive answer to the question of the usefulness of ingesting CISD and HSCISD. However, for the moment I remain sceptical.
Excessive accumulation of silver salts and other silver compounds in the body may lead to the development of argyria, a medical condition. Although argyria is not life-threatening or debilitating, it does have the unfortunate consequence of the permanent change of skin colour to a bluish-grey tone and increased photosensitivity. It must be noted that one would have to ingest very high doses of silver salts over more extended periods to develop argyria. In the case of properly produced colloidal ionic silver dispersions, silver salts are virtually non-existent. Since it is virtually impossible for silver cations (Ag+) to accumulate in tissues, any chance of developing argyria is eliminated.
Conclusion
High-quality colloidal ionic silver dispersions have proven effective in the treatment of topical infections and in facilitating wound healing. However, CISD has its limitations and is NOT a panacea. It might even be detrimental or dangerous to apply CISD treatment in case of neoplastic diseases like tumours and cancers for the reasons given earlier in this overview.
Presently, there is not enough reliable information available to predict with certainty the effects of CISD on specific diseases. During my research on improvements and enhancements to the HSCISD production process, I quickly learned that there are many seemingly unimportant parameters that one might overlook but which, at a later stage of research, proved crucial for the success of the production process and medicinal and other applications.
Although it is difficult at times to gather data on the behaviour of CISD and HSCISD in treatments, I recently had the opportunity to observe once more the effectiveness of highly saturated colloidal ionic silver dispersion in facilitating the wound-healing process. During the HSCISD treatment, I took a few photographs which illustrate some of the points I mentioned earlier in this brief overview of CISD properties.
Please note: To keep this article as understandable as possible, I had to resort to simplifications, which inevitably lead to a loss of scientific accuracy.