If you are just joining us, you might want to read Charcoal – A Humble Remedy, Part 1. It contains information about the wonderful aspects and benefits of using charcoal, and the uses for it.
Charcoal Dosing:
CHILDREN
• Activated charcoal is safe to use for children of all ages.
• GRAY WATER-To be taken internally by babies or those with sensitive digestion as in
ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, irritable bowel disease.
Stir 2 to 3 tablespoons of charcoal powder into a quart of warm water. Allow the charcoal to settle out then pour off the gray water into a baby bottle or separate glass. This can be repeated a number of times using the original charcoal. (A water bottle containing a small amount of charcoal is also wonderful to take traveling. Refilling it
with tap water at a gas station or restaurant will soon remove the chlorine. Allow the charcoal to settle
to the bottom.)
ADULTS
• 1 tablespoonful of charcoal powder stirred into a glass of water and taken before it settles, or 6 to 8 tablets or 4 capsules twice a day. It is best not to take charcoal when there is food in the stomach if it can possibly be avoided, as the food interferes with its action.
Charcoal powder can also be mixed into a bit of applesauce or honey. It should not be mixed with chocolate syrup, ice cream or sherbet to make it more palatable. These foods prevent the charcoal from working properly.
POISONING: Standard Hospital Single Dose:
•Child – 15 to 25 gms powder (approx. 1½ – 2½ Tablespoons)
•Adult – 50 gms powder (approx. 5 Tablespoons)
•Carefully add charcoal powder to water (not milk) in a capped bottle. Cap bottle and shake well.
•Drink entire contents as a single dose.
•Activated Charcoal does not work for certain drugs/poisons – contact Poison Control Center for
specific details-USA #800-222-1222)
If necessary to head for the emergency room, a dose can be taken before leaving home. The sooner the charcoal can be taken after the poison is ingested, the more effective it will be. Charcoal water can be made more acceptable if it is given through a straw and from a covered opaque container so the patient cannot see it.
Several things to remember:
-Because it will “detoxify” prescription or over-the-counter drugs, you need to take the charcoal 2 hours before or afterward as they will be less effective.
-Because charcoal may have a constipating effect, it should always be taken with plenty of water.
-Don’t be surprised to see your stools are black when the charcoal moves through!
Speaking of using charcoal for poisoning, chemist David O. Cooney, who is mentioned above, found that red colobus monkeys from Zanzibar Island in Tanzania appear to be detoxifying by eating charcoal. They especially enjoy Indian almond and mango leaves which contain potentially harmful phenolics. The monkeys are seen searching for charred stumps and logs and even stealing charcoal from man-made kilns. This knowledge is seen passed from mother to baby!
How to make a charcoal and flaxseed poultice for external use:
1. Place equal parts of charcoal and flaxseed in a pot. (Cornstarch may be substituted for flaxseed if unavailable, although flaxseed has it’s own anti-inflammatory and drawing power.) Grinding the flaxseed into a fine powder first will make the mixture form a paste faster. This can be done in a blender.
2. Add enough water to form a thick paste and bring it slowly to a boil while stirring.
3. Spread the paste as rapidly as possible on a piece of cotton, muslin, or even a paper towel, that is twice the size needed to completely cover the area to be treated.
4. The paste should be spread about one-quarter-inch thick over the middle portion of your cloth.
5. Fold as if you were wrapping a burrito and then place the poultice on the area of the skin to be treated.
6. Cover this with a piece of plastic or waxed papaer at least one inch larger on all sides than the poultice. It needs to remain wet to be effective.
7. Place a towel over the entire poultice and hold it in place with strips from an old sheet or towel, an Ace bandage, etc. Pin securely in place with safety pins.
8. Leave on overnight or for 8 to 10 hours during the day.
-The amount of material needed for the poultice will depend on the size of the area to be covered. A large area will require about 3 tablespoonsful of charcoal and flaxseed. For small areas, such as a bee sting or spider bite, use only charcoal to make the paste.
-Charcoal can be very messy, so be careful as you assemble the poultice.
-Successive poultices can be applied.
Care should be used when applying charcoal directly to open wounds, as some of the black powder may get trapped as the area heals, giving a tattoo effect.
Just two weeks ago we returned from Nicaragua where we enjoyed being with our son, Weston and family. When we flew home Monday morning I started in with a case of “traveler’s diarrhea”. By Tuesday morning I had frequent stools with lots of cramping. Happily, I remembered charcoal and took 1 tablespoon charcoal in a glass of water three times that day, followed by 2 more doses the following day. By Wednesday evening I was again symptom free! The picture below is of the attractively arranged entree from the outdoor restaurant meal we enjoyed Saturday evening. I am not too fond of fish, especially with an eyeball staring at me, so the others let me eat all of the vegetables that garnished our dish. I suspect this was the cause of my intestinal distress. (My husband’s sister says that while they lived in Latin America years ago, they would routinely soak their produce in water with a few drops of iodine to avoid this kind of thing.)
This spring I had pain due to a molar with an old filling that had cracked. I did not visit the dentist for several months, and the tooth was waking me at night. I began putting a wee bit of charcoal powder on a baby spoon and carefully dropping it between my gum and tooth before bedtime, eliminating all pain for that night.
Have you ever had a chigger bite? The itching is relentless, especially if you have many of them, all hidden in tender places! This happened to me several summers ago. I was breaking out as we headed south for a family reunion the day after I had been wild raspberry picking. That evening I found the small bit of charcoal I had taken along, dipped a moistened finger in it, and smeared it over each bite. I began covering each one with a band-aid, but soon abandoned that idea because of the many I had, plus the fact that the black smudges wasn’t visible to others. Charcoal saved the day-a few required a second application-but all was well and I could enjoy the rest of our visit!
I made a charcoal and flaxseed poultice for a little girl that reacted to a mosquito bite with a large raised wheel in the middle of her forehead. It was in an awkward spot, but we fastened the poultice using an elastic netting. Her older brothers had a little fun teasing her about her appearance afterward, but the poultice quickly took care of the swelling and itching.
It is possible to buy activated charcoal in bulk, capsule or tablet form, the powdered form being by far the most effective. A good place to order charcoal online is: http://www.buyactivatedcharcoal.com Their prices are competitive and their website includes a lot of information as well as testimonials. They have bulk ultra fine coconut shell charcoal available that is less gritty then hardwood charcoal. Charcoal can also be purchased from Amazon.
I’ll close with this from buyactivatedcharcoal.com:
Old charcoal remedies are repackaged today in glistening instruments and catchy packages, but the charcoal inside is still its same humble self – still unpretentious, still black, still dusty and messy to use, still relatively cheap, still ridiculed if not ignored, still largely un-thanked. But in hundreds if not thousands of ways charcoal touches our lives every day though we would scarcely know it. Crafted by the Creator’s hands, its history resurrected from the burial sands of ancient Egypt, charcoal is one of the single greatest benefactors to the human race.
“In a world being poisoned by its own near-sighted wisdom, God has provided man with a microscopic black hole big enough to swallow much of what ails us.”
- In Praise of Probiotics{Grandma’s Column} - October 7, 2015
- Roses Are Red, Violets Are Blue{Grandma’s Column} - May 26, 2015
- Healthier Options for Household Cleaners - April 21, 2015
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