History of Healing Clay

The names Bentonite and Montmorillonite are sometimes used interchangeably to refer to edible Calcium Bentonite Clays belonging to the smectite family of clays. These clays were formed from volcanic activity millions of years ago and are principally volcanic ash. Many sodium-based clays are marketed as edible Bentonite Clays but require mixing with an acid beverage, like apple cider vinegar, to offset the high sodium content prior to consumption. As our bodies cannot tolerate the ingestion of large amounts of sodium, the amount of sodium-based clay that can be consumed in a day is restricted to small dosages. There are no such consumption requirements or restrictions placed on pure Calcium Bentonite Clay. Sodium-based clays are more typically used for industrial purposes, including: plaster; oil well drilling mud; cat litter; matches; cement tiles; lubricating grease; paints; copy paper; dynamite; shoe polish; concrete; cleaning agents; wall boards, crayons; and bleaching agents. Calcium-based clays are referred to as “living clays” as they principally consist of minerals that contribute to the production of enzymes in all living organisms. They are the preferred clays to be ingested by humans, animals, and plants and for incorporating into soil.  Always check your product labels.  We recommend a pure, Calcium Bentonite Clay with a very fine mesh (325 is best) Healing clay may be a new concept to some of us, but it has been used for thousands of years.  Long before recorded history, humans have used healing clays externally and internally to cure illnesses, sustain life and promote general health. Ancient tribes of the high Andes, central Africa and the Aborigines of Australia used clay as a dietary staple, a supplement and for healing purposes. In the second century A.D., Galen, the famous Greek philosopher and physician, was the first to record the use of clay by sick or injured animals. He later recorded numerous cases of the internal and external uses of clay in his treatise on clay therapy.  In ancient Arabia, Avicena, the “Prince of Doctors”, taught hundreds of his students about clay therapy.  Dioscorides, a Greek who was considered the engineer of medicine for the Roman Empire, attributed “God-like Intelligence” to the properties exhibited by clay used for therapeutic purposes. The Essenes (authors of the dead Sea Scrolls) used clay for the natural healing of a wide variety of illnesses and injuries, and there are numerous Biblical references to the healing powers of clay. The many benefits of clay were recognized by the Amargosians (who preceded the Aztecs) and the natives of Mexico and South America.  North American Indians used clay for food, body purification, healing, in ceremonial events and for trading with other tribes.  Early French cultures used clay for nutrition and medicinal purposes and also as a trading medium. They touted the clay’s healing effect on gum diseases, ulcers, rashes, dysentery, hemorrhoids, infected wounds and bites. The 19th century German naturopath, Sebastian Kneipp, and fellow naturalist Adolph Just, accorded clay therapy a prominent position in their arsenal of holistic medicine due to the tremendous results they achieved using it. Early in the 20th century, Julius Stump, a renowned Berlin Physician, successfully used clay therapy to treat Asiatic cholera. A contemporary, Dr. Meyer Camberg, used green clay to neutralize arsenic poisoning.  During the 1st World War, German physicians offered clay therapy as a solution to the food poisoning, dysentery, diarrhea, and wound infection that was rampant among troops on both sides, greatly reducing mortality rates. During the First World War, the Russian soldiers received 200 grams of clay along with their rations and it was added to mustard in several French regiments, who remained free of the dysentery which ravaged nearby regiments. Modern man is also beginning to appreciate the miraculous healing properties of Calcium Bentonite Clay. Russian scientists used clay to protect their bodies from radiation when working with nuclear material. Because it adsorbs radiation so well, Bentonite Clay was the material chosen to dump into the Chernobyl reactors after the nuclear meltdown there.  Today, osteopaths, and other health professionals that include alternative medicine as a part of their practice, are increasingly recommending Bentonite clay to their patients for detoxification and to address other illnesses and injuries.