Re: What do you think of this?

Some of the claims and puffery about colloidal minerals leaves one wondering about the truth.

One thing that is not discussed in the colloidal mineral debate is those liquids extracted from humic shale contains fulvic acid in addition to minerals. The truth is the minerals are getting a lot of play, but a majority of the healthy properties identified are coming from the fulvic acid in the solution. Look at some of the research being done on these compounds.

PHARMACOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS

It was reported that the sodium salt of fulvic acid exerted hemostatic control in rats and rabbits (Liu et al., 1980). In that study, oral administration of the sodium fulvate markedly decreased both the extent of bleeding and the clotting time. Want et al. (1982) reported that the degree of ulceration, and the area occupied by the ulcer, decreased considerably in the stomach walls of rats with chronic gastric ulcers when 150 mg/kg/day of peat humic acid was administered orally over a period of eight days. These workers also observed that the spontaneous and histamini-pilocarpine and pentagastrin-stimulated gastric acid secretion was inhibited by 95% and 75-78%, respectively, in pylorous-ligated rats injected with humic acid (50 mg/kg). Gorniok et at. (1972) described how a single application of a water extract of peat to human beings caused the stomach pH to rise, the free hydrochloric acid to decrease, and the total acidity and sodium content of the stomach to decrease.

Beres et al. (1958) found that fulvic acid, administered orally to mice and cattle, was able to minimize the effects of carbon tetrachloride-induced hepatic lesions on the animal. They also found that oral or subcutaneous administration of fulvic acid to mice and guinea pigs that had consumed the poisonous death cap mushroom (Amanita phalloides) resulted in 50% of the animals surviving in the test group whereas the control group experienced 100% mortality. Lin et al. (1980) found that humic acids suppressed formaldehyde-induced foot edema in rats. It has also been shown that humic acid preparations were able to affect blood plasma levels of copper and zinc when administered orally to laboratory rats but had no effect on the amount of iron present. Pflug and Zeichman (1982) concluded that interaction of humic acid with the bacterium Miccrococcus luteus provided the organism protection against cell-wall disruption by the enzyme lysozyme. These observations are consistent with those of Thiel et al. (1977) who found that ammonium humate, at concent4rations of 0.5 mg/ml, inhibited the absorption of herpes simplex virus on the surface of the host cells. Preincubation of the cell cultures with ammonium humate prevented infection by the herpes virus.

The presence of microbiostatic substances in humus has been known for some time, and Fuchsman (1980) discussed the importance of peat as an antiseptic agent. Morgan and Scharff (1915) investigated the antiseptic properties of peat tars, and reported that the higher-boiling fractions were the most effective antiseptic agents. Swain (1963) also commented on the antiseptic properties of humus. Gorniok et al. (1972) claimed that the bacteriostatic activity of peat was related to its type and degree of humification, with the most active substances being found in well-decomposed peat. Hanel (19240 pointed out that sphagnum moss bandages were used in World War I to replace cotton absorbents, and “that they proved to be of special value owing to their antiseptic qualities.” In a one-year period from October 1917 to November 1918, the American Red Cross prepared 595,540 peat-moss pads as surgical dressings (Hotson, 1919). Biber and Bogolyubova (1952) observed accelerated healing of wounds in rabbits after humic acid was injected into the injured tissue.

Humic acid has been administered to pregnant rats without any observable complications. Oral administration of humic acid did not affect fertility or implantation rate of the fetus in the mother nor did it cause any toxic or teratogenic effects in the fetus (Golbs et al., 1982). Beres et al. (1958) concluded that fulvic acid, administered orally, intravenously or parenterally, was a “perfectly atoxic substance” in a variety of laboratory animals.

Peat has been used in balneotherapy for a long time (Solodovnikova et al., 1968). Gorniok et al. (1967) found an increase in the respiration rate in the skin, liver and kidneys of experimental animals that were immersed in a series of peat baths. Subsequently, Glazkova et al. (1984) described the ability of humic acid to pass through intact human skin. On studying the respiration rates of cells exposed to humus, Gorniok (1972) found that the water-soluble components caused an increase in respiration while humic acids depressed respiration. Biber and Magaziner (1951) reported the opposite effect for small doses of humic acids on isolated plant tissues. Animal studies have also demonstrated the possibility that some components of peat in baths may penetrate the skin and enter the body (Majewski et al., 1970; 1971). The curative effects of peat baths have been explained in various wasy (Souci, 1930). Winckel (1916) observed that peat and various peat extracts possessed strong catalytic properties which were comparable to the enzyme catalase which is found in some mineral waters. Kobert and Triller (1916) believed that the curative powers of baths were due to the astringent effects of some peat components on red blood corpuscles. The balneologic effects of peat have also been attributed to the presence of various minerals as well as the ability of peat to function as an absorbent (Schade and Kahler, 1926). The thermal properties of peat, which is characterized by a high heat capacity, low heat conductivity, and strong heat radiation, were believed to contribute to the curative action of peat on some ailments.

Torfot, a medicinal product, was prepared from peat at the Ukranian Research Institute of Eye Diseases at Odessa (Fuchsman, 1980). Torfot has been used as a topical treatment for myopia, myopic chorioretinitis, opacification of the vitreous humor, opacification of the cornea resulting from keratitis and early retinal degeneration. Torfot has also been administered subcutaneously. This product has been used to treat anemia, hepatitis and other dermatological, gynecological, and neurological diseases (Solovieva et al., 1977). The preparation of Torfot was described by Fuchsman (1980).

Fuchsman (1980) stated that pharmacologically the most important components of peat humus may be steroids and terpenoids. The importance of these compound classes resides not only in their applications for topical treatments (such as cosmetic creams and therapeutic baths) but more significantly in the isolation and identification of discrete compounds from which new medicinal chemicals may be synthesized. Lishtvan (1981) described a steroid-containing extract of peat called “Torfenal” which is claimed to be effective in treating skin disorders. Yanagisawa (1981) treated a soil humus extract with amino acid complexes and vitamin B analogs to produce a substance that was useful in cosmetic and pharmaceutical preparations.

The alleged activity of humus in such varied physiological processes is interesting considering the ill-defined nature of this material in contrast to the specificity of biochemical reactions. On the other hand, perhaps it is because humus is a complex mixture that it possesses so any medicinal properties. This idea is worthy of further study.

SUMMARY

As evident from the report, humus, and humus-containing materials, have been used in a wide variety of diverse applications. However, other than its use as a fuel and for horticultural purposes, there has been little or no systematic application of this material for industrial purposes. This may be due to the rather heterogeneous character of these materials and our limited understanding of their fundamental nature. Humus is a complex mixture of many components and it displays the properties of each of those components to some degree. For the most part, the industrial applications of humus seem to have been developed empirically, and in general, are not based on a fundamental understanding of its properties. Space does permit an analysis of the various applications of humus in terms of the properties of this material; that will be the subject of a later report.

DOCUMENT SOURCE

This paper is titled "Industrial Applications of Humus: An Overview" The emphasis of the paper discusses the applications in industrial, environmental, pharmacological and agricultural use. For ease of reading I attached only the pharmacological portion of the paper.

If you are interested in finding this document in its entirety, it can be found on page 1209 in the hardbound volume of the Proceedings of the 6th International Meeting of the IHSS. The volume is titled: "Humic Substances in the Global Environment and Implications on Human Health" by N. Senesi, T.M. Miano (Editor), International Humic Substances Society, ISBN: 0444895930