Interesting article discussing Borax and it's many health benefits when added to water and consumed throughout the day. The key factor here being Boron. Covers a whole host of health issues that can be improved by simply adding an 1/8-1/4 of a teaspoon of Borax to a liter of water and consuming throughout the day. I've been using for the past week, mainly for de-fluoridation, but for the other benefits as well. We shall see how it goes...
http://www.health-sc...t.com/borax.htm
Also here's a discussion of people trying this, or who have tried this using Borax
http://www.earthclin...ies/borax2.html
"Borax is necessary in small amounts for plant growth, one of the 16 essential nutrients. In larger amounts it is poisonous to plants, and the range can be small. For peaches, 1 ppm is required, but more than 5 ppm is toxic. If the signs of boron deficiency are noted in plants, a boron supplement can be applied. Borates can be used as non-toxic and non-specific herbicides. Borates are non-toxic to animals. The LD50 (dose at which there is 50% mortality) for humans is about 6 g per kg of body weight. Anything above 2 g is considered non-toxic, and borates are only 2 to 3 times as toxic as aspirin. Therefore, you are pretty safe unless you eat a pound and a half of borax for a snack. Borates are more toxic to insects than to mammals. The boranes and similar gaseous compounds are quite poisonous. As usual, it is not an element that is intrinsically poisonous, but toxicity depends on structure."
J.B. Calvert, (24 November 2002). Boron. Retrieved 03 October 2009, from http://mysite.du.edu/~jcalvert/phys/boron.htm
Borax? Like the cleaning agent?
Food additive
Borax, given the E number E285, is used as a food additive in some countries, but is banned in the US. As a consequence, certain foods, such as caviar, produced for sale in the US contain higher levels of salt to assist preservation.[10] Its use as a cooking ingredient is to add a firm rubbery texture to the food, or as a preservative. In oriental cooking it is mostly used for its texturing properties. In Asia, Borax (Chinese: ; pinyin: peng sha) or (Chinese: ; pinyin: yue shi) was found to have been added to some Chinese foods like hand-pulled noodles lamian and some rice noodles like Shahe fen, Kway Teow, and Chee Cheong Fun recipes.[11] In Indonesia it is a common, but forbidden, additive to such foods as noodles, bakso (meatballs), and steamed rice. The country's Directorate of Consumer Protection warns of the risk of liver cancer with high consumption over a period of 510 years.[12]
[edit]Other uses
- Ingredient in enamel glazes
- Component of glass, pottery, and ceramics
- Borax can be used as an additive in ceramic slips and glazes to improve fit on wet, greenware, and bisque.
- Fire retardant
- Anti-fungal compound for fiberglass and cellulose insulation
- Moth proofing 10% solution for wool[13]
- Anti-fungal foot soak
- Precursor for sodium perborate monohydrate that is used in detergents, as well as for boric acid and other borates
- Tackifier ingredient in casein, starch and dextrin based adhesives
- Precursor for Boric acid, a tackifier ingredient in polyvinyl acetate, polyvinyl alcohol based adhesives
- Fluoride detoxification
- Treatment for thrush in horses' hooves
- Used to make indelible ink for dip pens by dissolving shellac into heated borax
- Curing agent for snake skins
- Curing agent for salmon eggs, for use in sport fishing for salmon
- Swimming pool buffering agent to control the pH
- Neutron absorber, used in nuclear reactors and spent fuel pools to control reactivity and to shut down a nuclear chain reaction
- As a micronutrient fertilizer to correct boron-deficient soils.[14]
- To clean the brain cavity of a skull for mounting
- To color fires with a green tint[15]
- Was traditionally used to coat dry-cured meats such as hams to protect them from becoming fly-blown during further storage.
- Is found in some commercial vitamin supplements
- For stopping car radiator and engine block leaks[16]
- As an important component in Slime[17]
- Is used by the modern Blacksmith in the process of Forge Welding. (Different from fabrication Gas or Electric style welding)
Sounds kinda scary to me.
Liver cancer..?
Yeah, that's the one. Looking at that list makes it look even worse than simply seeing it in the laundry detergent section. I'll post some more info in regards to why it's viewed as hazardous as well. I've seen that it has the same toxicity level as salt. This is for Sodium Tetraborate, which is Borax you find at the store. The label also states that it contains Sodium Tetraborate Decahydrate
Health Hazard
No adverse effects from inhaling borax have been reported. Ingestion may cause acute or chronic effects; initial symptoms are nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea; these may be followed by weakness, depression, headaches, skin rashes, drying skin, cracked lips, and loss of hair; shock may follow ingestion of large doses and may interfere with breathing. Eye contact with powder or solutions may cause irritation; no chronic effects have been recognized, but continued contact should be avoided. Local skin irritation may result from contact with powder or strong solutions; the latter may cause chronic dermatitis on prolonged contact, and if skin is broken, enough boron may be absorbed to cause boron poisoning (symptoms are similar to those for ingestion).
Honestly, i'm not sure. Anther option would be to pick up a Boron supplement. Or to simply start drinking smart water (which is vapor distilled). Or distill your own water. I'm wondering if the headaches would be due to defluoridation. Not sure how quickly it works to eliminate built up fluoride deposits either. Anyway, i'm not advocating anyone try this just yet.
If I stop posting here it's because the Borax wasn't a good idea
Interesting. You should post a link in the iodine/flouride discussion. And organic apples should be a good source of boron. I'm going to look for info on adding it to the soil in my garden.
Yeah alternativista i'll have to do that. I've heard raisins and almonds are high in Boron as well. Didn't know about organic apples so i'll have to pick up some of those as well.
I updated the original post with a discussion of others who are trying this, or who have already tried it
So just reading through some of the other people's experiences trying this on Earth Clinic, it seems like they are experiencing some kidney pain that was reported the same day as consumption of 1/4 teaspoon per liter. And some of them are really freaking out. It seems to be credited to the excess of fluoride being released and circulating in the body. I've been doing this for a week now, and i've experienced headaches that seem to be sourced from the center of my head, which never happens. It's usually in the front.
They also say not to take Boric Acid, because this is not the same a Borax. I'm wondering if a better approach to fluoride detox is to consume foods high in Boron and drink water that has been decontaminated of the fluoride. This would be a longer process, but my guess is that you wouldn't run into these sudden releases of fluoride into your system. Any thoughts?
But then again, this solution to a fluoride detox supposedly only takes a a couple weeks. So i suppose if you can put up with some of the symptoms for a while, it'll be worth it in the end. Also i guess you're only supposed to go 5 days a week doing this
Adding an 1/8 of a teaspoon of celtic or dead sea salt to this would be smart, because the fluoride seems to be excreted more thoroughly with trace elements. The past couple days i've added an 1/8 teaspoon sea salt to the liter of water with 1/8 teaspoon of Borax. I'm fairly certain that the headaches i'm experiencing are from the fluoride detox
Interesting. I'm not sure consuming laundry-grade borax is wise. Aren't you concerned about toxic impurities or additives?
A boron supplement would be much safer, unless you believe the detoxifying properties are related to the structure of sodium tetraborate decahydrate?
Do you have any chemistry to better explain how boron/borax interacts with fluoride in the body?
Interesting. I'm not sure consuming laundry-grade borax is wise. Aren't you concerned about toxic impurities or additives?
Do you have any chemistry to better explain how boron/borax interacts with fluoride in the body?
I have no chemistry to better explain it. Though i could try to find some. It's hyped as being a great fluoride detox element, and the Boron supposedly binds to the fluoride and you urinate it out. I believe it was used for detoxing fluoride from bones in a chinese study with good success, and that's further discussed in the article. I've heard mixed reviews as to the quality of Boron supplements, but there are mixed reviews for everything. The right manufacturer could make a great Boron supplement, so this too is something i'd need to look more into
As far as the toxic impurities and additives are concerned, i could look more into that as well. I believe the laundry grade is only sodium tetraborate decahydrate, as that's the only ingredient listed. But there could be impurities that i'm unaware of. Will look into it
Also it seems that headaches are a good sign that the detox is happening, among numerous other symptoms. And i've decided to mix some coral calcium and magnesium into the liter of water to help flush everything out
I think i'm going the route of a slow fluoride detox from here on out. Eating right and drinking defluoridated water should gradually detox you. I think any fluoride detox that takes a short period of time to accomplish is going to be rough. I don't think my head can take another week of this
When I was thinking that my acne came from mites (total bullshit theory I was into before I learned about leaky gut and allergies) I used to dump a ton of borax in a bathtub and soak in it for like an hour, because people on the mite forums were saying it was a cure. Nothing bad happened....but I've never taken it internally.
I have heard that if you use it on your laundry (I do) it leaves trace amounts on your clothes which absorb through the skin and provide you with a little.
Boron is frequently added to calcium supplements because it enhances the the binding properties of the calcium. Country life is a reputable brand:
And swanson has quite a few solo boron products:
http://www.swansonvitamins.com/q?kw=boron&x=0&y=0
Swanson is an excellent company if you've never used them, btw.
As an aside, laundry borax is pure, I called the company and verified way back when I used to formulate skin care crap. An easy way to supplement your outdoor plants is to use the grey water at the end of your rinse cycle. I did that when I lived in AL. I had mexican heather that about took over the yard it was so dang healthy.
Thanks for the info ayla.
I'm pretty sure i was adding too much of the Borax to a liter of water (1/4 teaspoon) and drinking it too fast. I'm going to start again, only this time i'm going to use 1/8 teaspoon and drink it very gradually. And i'm also going to use distilled water and add some minerals to it. Also alternativista said they can super purify water for you at whole foods for dirt cheap, but i also found out they sell distilled water at grocery stores, which is really convenient
So i'm convinced that my headaches last week weren't mainly caused by this after all. Something i didn't consider was that i was out in the sun doing construction for the first time this year. I literally only spend about 10 minutes per day in direct sunlight, so being exposed for 8 hours a day for a week straight was pretty intense for me. And i usually get headaches when exposed to sunlight for extended periods of time
This is my second week of doing this, and i've added a calcium/magnesium supplement to the liter of water to help expel the fluoride. I just open the capsule and pour the contents inside. They sell liquid calcium/magnesium supplements as well and that'd be a great option too. Anyway, i believe it's important to only go 4 or five days a week doing this, as the load on your kidneys can be high while detoxing. And i'd for sure go with only 1/8 of a teaspoon per liter of water
Yeah sunlight in your eyes, squinting, and all that can cause headaches for sure. Migraine headaches especially.
You also might be getting headaches from sweating out a lot of your electrolytes, so be sure to make some fresh juice or something else to replace the stuff you lost when you do that kind of work.
Yeah they were definitely migraine like. And i wasn't getting enough electrolytes while working. I'm so used to being constantly hydrated, that i forget how much more you have to drink while working in the sun for eight hours straight.
This second week of the detox is going much better for sure. Still no headaches
I think the idea behind the Borax is that when you mix it with a liter of water, you are gradually and constantly supplying your body with the boron. This way there is a constant detox happening, and not just a short burst of boron in pill form. This is my understanding of it
Ive only heard of people using borax for dermadex mites. Some think their acne or roscea is caused by mites. It's used as a pesticide as well.
Boric acid ingestion by humans can lead to boric acid poisoning, which is a serious condition. If a person swallows roach killing products that include borax or boric acid, he can suffer acute poisoning. Chronic poisoning results from repeated exposure to this substance. Symptoms of poisoning can include blue-green vomit, diarrhea and a red rash on the skin. Other possible symptoms include blisters, collapse, convulsions, coma fever, sloughing of skin and fever.
Ive only heard of people using borax for dermadex mites. Some think their acne or roscea is caused by mites. It's used as a pesticide as well.
Boric acid ingestion by humans can lead to boric acid poisoning, which is a serious condition. If a person swallows roach killing products that include borax or boric acid, he can suffer acute poisoning. Chronic poisoning results from repeated exposure to this substance. Symptoms of poisoning can include blue-green vomit, diarrhea and a red rash on the skin. Other possible symptoms include blisters, collapse, convulsions, coma fever, sloughing of skin and fever.
No one should indeed ever ingest Boric Acid. This is not the same as Borax, so let's clear that up right away. Borax is simply Boron, Sodium, Oxygen, and hydrogen plus oxygen. It isn't acidic in nature
The ph of Borax is roughly 9.5, while the ph of Boric Acid is roughly 3.7
There is no sodium in Boric Acid
I'm definitely noticing more vivid dreams since starting this three weeks ago. And this seems to be a pretty common thing when you detox fluoride from the pineal gland. Although i'm sure other tissues in the brain have fluoride built up as well. I think if anyone tries this method, it would be good to use fluoride free water. So distilled, or any other method that you know for a fact removes fluoride.
Also i've been adding coral calcium/magnesium to the liter of water to help in the elimination of the fluoride. (i've read this is good to do when detoxing) I've just been pulling apart the capsules and dumping one in a liter of water with 1/8 teaspoon Borax. I know they sell calcium/magnesium in liquid form as well. And apparently adding an 1/8 teaspoon of a pure sea salt like Celtic or Dead helps as well.