A touch of silver

A touch of silver

By Saurabh Bhattacharya

August 1999

The wonder-element silver makes a therapeutic comeback as colloidal silver.

At first glance, it looks fairly rudimentary—two silver electrodes dipped in a glass of distilled water and attached by clasps to a wire that has a docile adapter at the other end. But, after being switched on for precisely six minutes, this minimalist instrument is supposed to turn plain water into a cure-all potion. Looks have never been so deceptive! The gadget in question is Vitalizer-SSS108 and the cure-all potion goes by the name of colloidal silver—the latest member of an ever-growing club of alternative therapies. Vitalizer-SSS108 utilizes the innate nontoxic and therapeutic aspects of silver through simple electrolysis. Colloidal silver is produced by passing electricity through two wires containing 99.9 per cent silver. This results in the release of electrically charged silver ions that remain suspended in water, as the high electric charge that each ion carries opposes the pull of gravity. After about three months, the ions settle down. Then all you need to do is recharge another glass.

So much for the process. But how does this silver-charged potion actually work? Apparently, silver is one of the 92 natural, chemically pure elements. Research cconducted during the late 1930s showed that while silver was absolutely harmless on man, it was toxic to all species of bacteria, fungi, protozoa, parasites and a number of viruses. Essentially, silver acts as a catalyst, disabling those enzymes that are necessary for the survival of single-cell bacteria, fungi and virus. At the same time, it protects the body’s natural enzymes and stimulates tissue growth. Despite its proven benefits, silver went out of favor as a remedy because of its prohibitive cost and the fact that manufacturers could not patent it. But colloidal silver may yet bring the element back into the limelight, as it is relatively cost effective and curative.

Sumant Ahuja, a New Delhi-based entrepreneur who is the creator of the Vitalizer in this part of the world personifies the therapeutic benefits of colloidal silver. A chronic victim of viral influenza, he had to go through debilitating rounds of antibiotics at least twice a year. ‘Ever since I started taking a teaspoon of colloidal silver everyday,’ he says. ‘I haven’t fallen ill even once. Even my gray hair is now turning black.’ Ahuja is a deep believer in the therapy. ‘I want everybody to use colloidal silver and reap its benefits,’ he says. And he is happy not patenting his creation. ‘Patenting it would mean calling something that is of universal good my own creation. And that would be an absolute lie,’ says the alternative healer.