The Earth is the source of infinite means for restoring and maintaining good health. The Earth itself, receiving its vital energies from sun, air and waters is a most powerful healing agent of physical regeneration.
Clay, this form of earth, participates in life giving and health restoring processes.
Green illite clay is the best known of the clays for overall well being.
Its main properties are the following :
ABSORBENT - ADSORBENT - PURIFYING - CALMING
(Please see below for properties)
Rich in minerals - Oligo-elements
Since 1996, this particular Illite clay is the only one that has been approved for food use by the Conseil Superieur d'Hygiene de France , ( French National Health Superior Counsel ) authorizing it for internal use.
Specifications:
Origin: France
Shelf life- Indefinite (4-5 years recommended)
Color- Light green
Odor- Flat
Bulk Density (gm/20ml) 6.6
Extraneous Matter- 0.01%
Heavy metals (mg/kg)- <3 PPM Max.
e Coli- Tested Negative
Salmonella- Tested Negative
Coliform- <10 CFU/G
Moisture Content- 0.14%
Bacterial Plate Count (Aerobic)- <1000 CFU/G
Yeast & Mold- <1000 CFU/G
Total Ash- 79.8
pH- 7.75
What is it?
French Green Clay is by far one of the most majestic, most effective, and most commonly used mineral skin clays found throughout our global community.
Green clays consist of curative volcanic ashes which are found near ancient volcanoes, 20-50 meters below the ground surface. It contains only natural material treated mechanically, without any chemical additives. They are rich in magnesium and trace elements, as well as organic plant matter which alongside iron oxide determines its soft green color (illite has a lighter hue of green than montmorillonite). They detoxify, restore mineral balance and act as an absorbent.
French Green Clay (aka Illite Clay or Sea Clay) is a 100% natural bio-organic material and contains a cornucopia of valuable elements, with several important mineral oxides, magnesium, calcium, potassium, dolomite, silica, manganese, phosporous, silicon, copper, and selenium.
Why is it green ?
Green clay owes its coloration to 2 very important factors, which ultimately define good quality clay from poor quality clay. They are, iron oxides, and decomposed plant matter…..Yes, that is correct, decomposed plant matter. The natural green tones found in this luxurious clay are from the very cycles of life this earth uses to regenerate itself. When purchasing French Green Clay it is of utmost importance that it is truly green, or off green in color. French Green clay cannot be white or gray in color ever.
French Green Illite is a non-swelling clay. It is sometimes called 'marine clay' due to the quarries being found in the ancient marine beds. This gives Illite a very rich mineral content. It has a better absorption ability than the Montmorillonite . Its sorptive properties give it a very powerful drying and detoxifying effect. With its very high sorption capacity, illite acts like a magnet for toxins, so it is the greatest detoxifying remedy available in nature.
Where Does Illite Come From?
Sun-dried Illite clay has been extracted from quarries in France . The chosen sites are pollution-free and selected for their high mineral content. Drying is carried out exclusively by the sun and the clay is produced without preservatives and inspected according to the meticulous standards of the International Standards Organization (I.S.O). This guarantees consistent supply Illite clay of the highest purity & quality.
Clay Storage & Use
Clay must be kept dry. It should never be mixed with metal spoons or stored in metal containers; the only materials that should be used in preparation or storage are wooden spoons or glass stirrers, and either glass or ceramic containers. It is thought that the clay loses its beneficial electromagnetic qualities through contact with metal. Once used, never re-use the same clay.
How to use it and for what ?
Please go to Clay for humans for yourself
or Clay for horses for your horse
or Clay for pets for your cats and dogs
ABSORPTION
The absorbent power of this clay is extraordinary.
Clay has the power to attract and either absorb or stimulate the evacuation of toxic and non-useful elements. In general, clay has remarkable resistance to chemical agents and only the most energetic ones can attack it.
As a bacteria-destroying agent it can render contaminated water innocuous.
Its absorbent power has contributed to the elimination of the chemical taste of chloride in Paris water.
Raw eggs covered with clay lose three times more weight than if they remained in the open air, without causing any damage to the eggshell.
When clay is used as a body deodorant, or when smelling substances are mixed with the clay, the odor disappears, absorbed by the clay.
This action is far limited to only deodorization, but when ingested , it travels along the digestive path and uproots many unwelcome intrusive bodies, including gas.
Let's think of this wonderful absorbing power as a sponge effect.
ADSORPTION
The degree of the adsorbing power of this clay is another key to its wonderful healing abilities.
Let's keep things simple enough to understand...
Absorption of the impurities in the tissues, neutralizing and draining these impurities.. extra cellular level.
Adsorption means the pulling out of the impurities that are in a state of suspension in the body liquid (blood, lymph, bile) and then draining and eliminating them... Intra cellular level.
Clay considerably reduces the toxicity of harmful substances.
A famous incident that happened in France in which many dogs have been poisoned, but survived, thanks to the clay which had been put in their drinking water.
According to Dr Camberg ( a European doctor), clay takes care of any poisoning such as arsenic! One teaspoon of clay mixed in a glass of water every hour for 6 hours to be out of trouble.
As with all natural remedies, clay does not act specifically on one or several bacteria varieties ;rather it prevents their proliferation by reinforcing the defenses of the organism.
Contributing to the elimination of acids, clay favors a good pH of the blood.
Let's think of this wonderful adsorbing power as a magnet effect.
For healing and therapeutical purposes, this clay may be used externally and orally.
Eating clay can be a wonder-working cure!
Applied in poultices and compresses, clay provides numerous benefits.
It can heal sores and ulcers and aid in the rebuilding of healthy tissues and cells, and even of fractured bones and vertebrae.
Everything unhealthy and emiting negative radiations is irresistibly attracted to clay ( a brilliant positive pole) and becomes subject to immediate elimination.
Wherever there is a deficiency, clay seems to supply the needed substance regardless of whether or not the clay itself is rich in that substance.
Researches :
Lots of researches have been done about clays..
The french CNRS ( Centre National de Recherche Scientifique) is oftenly trying to break the "secrets" of clay.. and so are others !
Recent research indicates that French Green clays have an ability to bind mycotoxins in the digestive system of animals as well as several bacteria in-vitro. "In experiments, the clay killed up to 99 per cent of superbug colonies within 24 hours. Control samples of MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) grew 45-fold in the same period. The clay has a similar effect on other deadly bacteria tested, including salmonella, E. coli, and a flesh-eating disease called buruli, a relative of leprosy which disfigures children across central and western Africa. It has been classed as "an emerging public health threat" by the World Health Organization (WHO)." The effectiveness of the French green clays, which are mostly made of minerals called smectite and illite, was first demonstrated by Line Brunet de Courssou, a French doctor fighting buruli at clinics in Ivory Coast and Guinea." The Independent, 28 October 2007.
A German scientist once described the bactericidal properties of clay: "The curative properties of clay are founded in its special physical characteristics, above all in the distribution of its minute particles. Individual clay particles are smaller than many bacteria. If infected mucous membranes are more or less flooded with clay, the bacteria are completely surrounded by clay particles and are thus separated from their source of nourishment and become imbedded in the inorganic material. Growth and the survivability of the bacteria are thus halted almost instantaneously, and from this explained strikingly speedy abatement of the symptoms of infection and/or symptoms of poisoning in acute infectious diseases of the alimentary canal." Julius Stumpf, Bolus fur medizinische Anwenduno Darmstadt, 1916, p. 19.
Scientific research into clay is ongoing. See: (Williams & Haydel) and G.S.A. Press Release. In a 2007 research report entitled 'Chemical and Mineralogical Characteristics of French Green Clays Used for Healing' Dr. Lynda B.Williams of Arizona State University states:
"In attempt to scientifically substantiate the observed effect of the French green clays on bacteria, we have examined the mineralogy and chemical composition of two different French green clays used in the treatment of Buruli ulcer. Tests of the affect of the two clays on a broad-spectrum of bacterial pathogens showed that one clay, (CsAr02) promotes bacterial growth while another (CsAg02) kills bacteria.
Analyses of mineralogy (by X-ray diffraction), major element chemistry (by electron microprobe), trace element chemistry (by ICP-MS), and textural relationships (by high resolution SEM) were used to deduce that the killing mechanism is not physical (attraction between clay and bacteria), but by a chemical transfer. Mineralogically the two clays are similar; however their trace element chemistry differs. Cation exchange procedures remove the antibacterial component of the clay and leachates are shown to effectively kill bacteria. Heating the clay to 900?C destroys its structure and the oxidized product is no longer antibacterial. The pH of the clay and associated water is high (9.4-10), and may play an important role in the speciation of toxins."
Some Technical Info
Illite is found in certain regions in the North of France and in the Atlantic basin. Montmorillonite is found mainly in the South of France.
Illite is a non-expanding, clay-sized, micaceous mineral. Illite is a phyllosilicate or layered alumino-silicate. Its structure is constituted by the repetition of Tetrahedron – Octahedron – Tetrahedron (TOT) layer. The interlayer space is mainly occupied by poorly hydrated potassium cations responsible for the absence of swelling. Structurally illite is quite similar to muscovite or sericite with slightly more silicon, magnesiom, iron and water and slightly less tetrahedral aluminium and interlayer potassium.
The chemical formula is given as (K,H3O)(Al,Mg,Fe)2(Si,Al)4O10[(OH)2,(H2O)], but there is considerable ion substitution. It occurs as aggregates of small monoclinic grey to white crystals. Due to the small size, positive identification usually requires x-ray diffraction analysis.
Illite occurs as an alteration product of muscovite and feldspar in weathering and hydrothermal environments. It is common in sediments, soils, and argillaceous sedimentary rocks as well as in some low grade metamorphic rocks. Glauconite in sediments can be differentiated by x-ray analysis. The cation exchange capacity (CEC) of illite is smaller than that of smectite but higher than that of kaolinite typically around 20 – 30 meq/100 g.
Illite is highly absorbent clay (30% - it absorbs 30% of water) and has a relatively low re-mineralization power (12%). It is used in cases where detoxification and decongestion is important. The active minerals in illite include calcium, silicium, several important mineral oxides, magnesium, potassium, dolomite, silicium, manganese, phosporous, copper, and selenium .
Cationic (ionic) exchange rate, alongside their sorptive properties, is one of the most important factors of clays. In fact, each type of clay exchanges mineral elements with the environment they are in and has a certain coefficient of absorption which varies from one clay to another.
This fundamental property is used in natural treatments to neutralize toxins, poisons, as well as to bring to the body the minerals it needs to stay healthy. Magnesium plays a particularly important role in health maintenance taking part in about 350 reactions in the body, and is part of the ATP (the energy molecule). Without sufficient magnesium we develop all sorts of problems.
Both Illte and Montmorillonite clays absorb water. However, the Montmorillonite clay is called 'the swelling' type, while illite clays are called 'non-swelling'. The reason that both are not equally referred to as 'swelling', considering that they both absorb water has been explained this way, apparently, the illite clays have a highly poprous crystal structure, so the water gets inside the crystals, which makes the clays so absorbent. With montmorillonites, on the other hand, the water gets between the flat layers in the clay particles, which causes the layers to move apart, causing the 'swelling' effect. Both the Green Montmorillonite and the Green Illite can absorb a large amount of water. For the other Illite clays and the Kaolinite the absorption rate is lower.