A Touch of Silver

When one thinks of silver, it is as a coin, utensil, or jewelry, yet silver has been used in medicine for many millennia and continues to this day. The purpose of this column is to discuss how the use of silver benefits the health of individuals.

Silver, whose chemical symbol is Ag from the Latin argentum, is mainly used for its antimicrobial properties and the fact that it has minimal toxicity to human cells at low concentrations. Hippocrates, the Father of Medicine, used silver preparations to treat skin ulcers and heal wounds. There are records that Alexander the Great (356 BC-323 BC) used silver-lined containers to keep the water potable for long periods. The earliest recorded use of silver for therapeutic purposes dates back to the Han Dynasty in China, 1500 BC.

Upper middle-class families knew about silver’s health benefits during the Middle Ages. As a result, they used silver in food utensils and cups to keep food from spoiling. Unfortunately, this practice caused many to ingest enough silver to develop a bluish skin discoloration known as argyria, which led to the term “blue blood.”

Today silver has expanded to a variety of products. A partial list of the patented uses of silver is as follows:

• A material to coat medical implants with various forms of silver for infection prevention
• Surgical needles are coated with silver for the prevention of infection
• Bone implants with a controlled release of silver ions for infections
• A coating of antimicrobial silver to the interior surface of a building’s wall
• Topical gel with silver particles to treat dermal infections
• An aqueous gel with silver as its active ingredient to treat wounds caused by burns
• Silver coated wound dressings
• Silver suspended in aqueous gel to reduce infection risks of dental procedures
• Denture material made with silver as an ingredient for additional antimicrobial effects
• Addition of silver particles to cosmetics as a preservative
• Textile material with silver-containing antimicrobial fabric
• Silver-containing deodorants and air purifiers
• Domestic latex gloves impregnated with silver particles
• Silver particles in water filtration for purification purposes

The most common use of silver in modern medicine is in a product called Silvadene (silver sulfadiazine) cream. It is used extensively in the treatment of burns and other wound injuries. During the 1960s, a sulfonamide burn cream (Sulfamylon) was discovered to be very effective in wound infections, and Dr. Charles Fox of Columbia University, knowing of the wound healing properties of silver, combined the two products resulting in silver sulfadiazine (Silvadene).

A dietary supplement is currently available without a prescription called colloidal silver, but it is beyond the scope of this column to discuss this product other than to say it is taken internally and seems safe when taken in the recommended doses. However, when too much silver is ingested the condition called argyria, a blue-gray skin discoloration may occur, which in some cases is permanent. Therefore, do your research before taking colloidal silver internally, and know that colloidal silver should be used only for short periods. There are also topical gels containing silver to treat minor skin injuries.

Some interesting facts are that Argentina got its name from the Spanish, who discovered silver in South America during the days of exploration. The country name, Argentina, is derived from the Latin argentum for silver. In addition, silver is used in water purification systems in modern-day manned spacecraft, such as the International Space Station and voyages to the moon.

The research continues on silver in areas that include antiplatelet activity, antioxidant effect, anticancer activity, wound healing, bone regeneration, enhancement of immunity, and increased antibiotic efficiency. Silver has been benefiting mankind for ages: as jewelry, as a store of value, and as a health-promoting agent. Now the phrase “ a touch of silver” has more meaning.

Prosper and be in health.