Silver Consumption Turns Your Skin Blue

Even from the Middle Ages, royal and noble houses used silver dishes due to their disinfectant effect. Colloidal silver is still sold as a cold drug, decongestant, all-around germ fighter, a type of universal panacea. But is there any real reason to take colloidal silver as a dietary supplement? The answer is a clear NO, and it can induce some serious and weird side effects.

There are silver-derived compounds employed in conventional medicine. Silver sulfadiazine is employed against severe burns. Fabric impregnated with silver is sometimes applied as dressing for wounds or skin infections. Silver nitrate is in some occasion employed against warts and corns. As silver is malleable and non-toxic, it is employed by stomatologists for dental alloys for fittings and fillings.

But there's no scientific proof that oral intake of colloidal silver induces any benefits. Silver rarely harms the brain and nerves, but the colloidal form can provoke kidney damage, stomach distress, and headaches.

The most common problem linked to silver ingestion is argyria: the skin gets a bluish gray hue as granules of silver store in the body. The conjunctiva (the thick membrane covering the eyes) and internal organs may also experience this strange effect. And once silver is deposited, there's no way to eliminate it, so the discoloration could be permanent, like in a tatoo.

So, will your skin turn blue just by drinking colloidal silver products currently on the market? A short time consumption and in recommended doses will probably not induce this effect, but some people tend to exaggerate. This was the case of a 59-year-old man sent to the emergency room because he seemed to be cyanotic (the bluish hue skin signals you're not getting enough oxygen). It appeared he'd been taking a homemade potion of colloidal silver whenever he felt a cold coming on.