I have in the past used activated black charcoal and I know it has a lot of uses. Sometimes people here ask about intestinal gas and or bloating. I found this paragraph at:
[www.joyfullivingservices.com]

What Can It Do? Intestinal gas: Whereas carbon will not absorb air in the stomach, intestinal gas is usually hydrogen, methane or carbon dioxide (and sometimes ammonia and hydrogen sulfide) and these will be "absorbed" by charcoal.

"Few people realize that the body normally gets rid of most of its intestinal gas by diffusion through the intestinal wall where it is taken by the blood to the lungs to be expelled. An inflamed or toxic coating of the intestinal wall can prevent this process, allowing a buildup of painful and noxious gas. Activated charcoal will not only remove the gas, but often can also remove the toxic irritant causing it."
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I found the last sentence of particular interest. I thought others may find it interesting too and maybe helpful.

Love,
Prism

I know for a fact that this is possible: When I had a terrible digestive crisis at the beginning of the year, activated charcoal slurries corrected my bloating and forced a lot of nasty stuff to come out; coupled with water/ginger tea fasting, of course

Thanks for posting, Prism

Traditional American Indian Healing
[aihc1998.tripod.com]
Arikara women were given a drink of the berry juice to stop bleeding. ... Shoshone women of Nevada reportedly drank a cold water infusion of ... Digestive Disorders ... The Catawbas used a tea from the root and the Cherokee as a stomach ache ... water with hot rocks was a favorite Potawatomi treatment for muscle aches.

I was told by Corbin Harney western Shoshone spirt leader the Shoshone injested
rocks for stomach disorders.

Please click on the link above for native herbal healing info



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 10/29/2012 07:11PM by riverhousebill.

My only worry is that if you are needing to use activated charcoal daily for gas, is the ability of charcoal to bind to beneficial nutrients.

Overall i feel it would be better to correct the cause of gas in the first place, which is often low stomach acid and in turn increased fermentation.

But on the other hand ive had good results in the past with activated charcoal for mopping up the bad stuff when my peristalsis weren't as good as it should be. At that time when i wasn't eliminating very well, activated charcoal, chlorella and brown seaweed were the difference from feeling like i had the flu and feeling semi-normal.

[www.vegankingdom.co.uk]



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/29/2012 08:31PM by powerlifer.

What I've read about charcoal is that even after 6 months of using it and with blood testing they didn't find any nutrients/vitamin depletion in subjects at least in 1 study.

Charcoal doesn't absorb but it's like a magnet and it attracts the toxins which adhere to it. It's like a link roller.

I think it may even be beneficial of one were to have some more pressing problems like the start of some cancers. There is a lot to read and there is a book I'd like to have about the uses of charcoal. But the Internet has so much more it's just a matter of finding the info. and not coming across repetitive articles as is often the case.

Love,
Prism

Is there acrylimide in charcoal? Another way to combat gas is with with colonics.

Good question although I believe that activated black charcoal by its very nature would not harbor that substance (just my intuitive self..I could be very wrong). For those of us that didn't know or don't know what Acrylamide is here is a definition from Wikipedia:
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Discovery of acrylamide in foods
Acrylamide has been found to occur in many cooked starchy foods and is of concern as a possible carcinogen.[10] Acrylamide was accidentally discovered in foods in April 2002 by scientists in Sweden when they found the chemical in starchy foods, such as potato chips, French fries, and bread that had been heated (production of acrylamide in the heating process was shown to be temperature-dependent).[10] It was not found in food that had been boiled[10][11] or in foods that were not heated.[10]
Acrylamide levels appear to rise as food is heated for longer periods of time. Though researchers are still unsure of the precise mechanisms by which acrylamide forms in foods, many[12] believe it is a byproduct of the Maillard reaction. In fried or baked goods, acrylamide may be produced by the reaction between asparagine and reducing sugars (fructose, glucose, etc.) or reactive carbonyls at temperatures above 120 °C (248 °F).[13][14]
Later studies have found acrylamide in black olives,[15] prunes,[16] dried pears[16] and coffee.[17] Estimates for the proportion of acrylamide in adults’ diet coming from the consumption of coffee range from 20 to 40%; prune juice has a high concentration of acrylamide, though adults consume it in far smaller quantities.[18] Acrylamide is also found in cocoa powder, roasted almonds, whole wheat bread, and Pringles. [19]
The FDA has analyzed a variety of US food products for levels of acrylamide since 2002.[20]
A 72-hour study of urine from six young healthy volunteers who had consumed a meal containing 0.94 mg of acrylamide concluded, “most of the acrylamide ingested with food is absorbed in humans”.[21]
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There is a lot more info. at wikipedia if you want to know more. I didn't know what it was until I had to look up the word today. I am going to look for more info. about it.

Love,
Prism