Argentum Pentas™ Colloidum-General Info   Summary:      Argentum Pentas™ Colloidum is among the best colloidal silver preparations available on the market today. The following characteristics tell the story: Particle size 0.65 nm 75-80% silver particles 20-25% silver ions Concentration min.20 ppm    The difference in our preparation is that while a straight colloidum is 100% pure colloidal silver, the Pentas™ version is 90% pure colloidal silver with 10% volume consisting of a homeopathically potentized version of the colloidal silver, in the D7, 11, 18, and 30 potency. This is important to anthroposophical and homeopathic physicians and patients who would like to have both a mass and an etheric/energetic effect from their silver intake.   Generally Accepted Uses of Colloidal Silver:      Silver used to be a very well regarded anti-microbial agent. It fell out of favor with the advent of chemical antibiotics. Today, it is finding a renaissance due to the emergence of drug resistant strains of microorganisms; the same microorganisms are sensitive to silver. A prime example is MRSA (methicillin resistant staph aureus). Silver has been tested against aspergillus niger, candida albicans, E.coli, hemorrhagic E.coli, pseudomonas aeruginosa, staph. aureus, trichophyton rubrum, vancomycin resistant enterococcus faecalis, vancomycin resistant staph aureus and was found to reduce the viable colonies to below detection levels. Silver preparations are currently used in FDA accepted formulations against infections in burns.    In non-FDA registered preparations, silver is promoted for the use in: ·         flus ·         urinary tract infections ·         bronchitis ·         diabetic foot infections ·         sinusitis ·         diarrhea ·         prostatitis ·         pharyngitis ·         foot fungus   Pharmacological Aspects of Silver and Silver Colloids      Silver is unique among antimicrobial agents in its broad spectrum of action. It impacts the life cycle of microorganisms negatively by disrupting the respiratory chain in these organisms. It has been claimed to kill some 650 different disease organisms. Silver kills in vitro microorganisms of all major types: gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, spore-forming bacteria, fungus/yeasts, viruses and protozoal parasites. It also kills 95% of 72 strains of herpes virus, as well as the protozoal parasite Plasmodium berghei (malaria). It also kills various yeasts, including several Aspergillus varieties, and 50 different clinical isolates of Candida albicans.”    True colloidal silver products are the least prevalent type of colloidal silver on the market due to high degree of manufacturing complexity and the resulting 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 more than 50% particles (often 50 – 80%), while the balance (20% to 49%) will be silver ions. When referring to colloidal silver, the word colloid meanssilver particles, not ions. The two critical factors to look for in determining true colloids arethe percentage ofsilver particles and thesurface particle area.    Of all the types of silver marketed as colloidal, true colloidal silver products have the highest particle surface area. High particle surface area is achieved by a high percentage of silver particles combined with very small sized particles. Of the three types of silver on the market, true silver colloids have the highest particle surface area relative to the total silver content. A higher ratio of particle surface area to total silver content determines effectiveness. The higher ratios are more desirable and effective.    The nanometer-sized particles in true silver colloids remain in colloidal suspension without requiring protein or other additives. It is the mutual repulsion of the particles created by the zeta potential charge that keeps the particles uniformly distributed in the colloid.    Because of the high concentration of silver particles, true silver colloids are never clear. 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.    Due to the very low concentration of ionic silver and small particle size, true silver colloids do not cause argyria, a condition that causes the skin to turn blue-gray.     Safety, Dosage and Administration      Argentum Pentas™ Colloidum is recommended to be taken in quantities of 1 to 6 teaspoons per day, as an acute treatment for up to several weeks.    Although in the medical literature a case of toxicity or complication has never been reported with the use of colloidal silver, the condition of argyria has been reported with excessive doses of silver salts. Argyria is a non-lethal condition of grey-to-blue discoloration of the face. It has been known to occur with chronic ingestion of high doses of silver nitrate, 30,000-50,000 ppm (!). A generally recurring amount given for a safety threshold is 900 mg of silver salts per year. This would correspond to a minimum of 350 bottles taken in a year of the present formulation. Other sources give the more likely exposure to risk of argyria at 3 g or more per day, which would correspond to 1,000 bottles of the present formulations per day. Again, it needs to be emphasized that only very concentrated forms of silver salts will, and then only occasionally, cause the problem of argyria.  The issue is emphasized here in order to alleviate any possible concerns in the mind of the therapist or patient. The EPA allows up to 0.005mg/kg/day of life- long silver consumption.      As a perspective, while there have been no reported adverse effects to silver preparations in recent years, there are at least in excess of 50,000 yearly deaths recorded secondary to use of antibiotics, even when their use was appropriate.   What Is Special About The Argentum Pentas™ Colloidum Formulations?   Due to the proprietary manufacturing technology applied, the silver particles in this formulation are sub-nanometer size. The diameter of a single silver atom is 0.288 nm. Silver particles, which are predominantly present here, as opposed to silver ions, consist of several silver atoms. A particle one nm in diameter would consist of 31 silver atoms, while a particle of size 5 nm would be about 3900 atoms, and a particle of 20 nm would contain 250,000 silver atoms. The smaller the size, the larger the surface area available to react, consequently, the higher the quality of the product. At a concentration of 1 ppm, this preparation has a surface area of 104.7cm2/mL. Note that other colloidal silver formulations typically have a surface area of 1 to 12 cm2/mL of fluid, In homeopathic potencies, the attempt is being made to increase the contact between the surface area of the substance in question and the medium. It is understandable why a potency made from an original substance that has a higher surface area is going to achieve its goal to a higher degree. Let’s take this example: If one would start with a silver coin and “potentize” it in the usual fashion, one would have 9 parts of medium in contact with the mass of the coin. (One hopes that the quality of the silver in the coin would impart itself to the medium.) The process is then repeated in a rhythmical manner. If a coin of the same mass were available in nanometer-sized particles, the surface area in contact with the medium would now be one million times the previous number! We are striving in all our preparations to achieve such high contact surfaces. Since this is a true colloidal silver preparation, it is not light sensitive and will not interact with the container that it is in, whether plastic or glass. It contains no protein. This is important since there are so called mild and strong protein preparations on the market which use protein molecules to keep the silver atoms floating. The problem is that these proteins wrap themselves around the silver most of the time and render most of the silver inactive. The “colloidal silver” products on the market that do not list the percentage of ionic-vs-particle amounts on the label are leaving out crucial information. They are usually made by electrochemical means where the majority of the silver is in ionic form. Exact information has been given here.     References Hill, Pillsbury, Argyria - The Pharmacology of Silver, Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins, 1939. Grier, N., "Silver and Its Compounds" in Disinfection, Sterilization and Preservation, S. Block, ed., Philadelphia: Lea & Febiger, 380-428, 1983.   Long, D., Spencer Jones, S, Bioterrorism: Secrets for Surviving the Coming Terrorist Germ Warfare Attacks on U.S. Cities, Barstow, CA: Life & Health Research Group, 1998. Powell, J., "Our Mightiest Germ Fighter" Sci. Digest, Mar., 57-60, 1978.   Romans, I., "Silver Compounds" & "Oligodynamic Metals" in Antiseptics, Disinfectants, Fungicides and Chemical and Physical Sterilization, G. Reddish, ed., Philadelphia: Lea & Febiger, 380-428, 1954 Thurman, I, Gerba, C. (1989), "The Molecular Mechanisms of Copper and Silver Ion Disinfection of Bacteria and Viruses," CRC Crit Rev Envir Control 18, 295-315.   This product description sheet is not meant to replace the services of a qualified health care practitioner. This product is not meant to cure any disease and the information supplied here has not been approved by the FDA.