Dad Knows Best - Bentonite



Dad knows best. Sometimes you just have to accept it. You might not always agree with him or you might even think he's a little cuckoo, but in the end he's almost always right.

For years my dad has been consuming clay. Every morning he mixes a heaping teaspoon of this grey clay powder into his orange juice or cereal. In the case of the OJ, it turns an awful greeny grey in color and is rather unappetizing looking. He would preach about the health attributes to folks and I had listened, but pretty much tuned him out.

Then last year Dr. Oz mentioned bentonite clay. Yes, I am a Dr. Oz devotee. I love his radio show (don't particularly care for the TV show). I've learned so much about different medical topics, including homeopathy and other topics. This particular time he was talking about five things that should be added to your medicine cabinet and bentonite clay was one of them.


Then we came across Redmond Clay at the Fancy Food Show and they were handing out samples of bentonite clay. "I know this!" I exclaimed. I told the guy about my dad taking it every morning and he said he rarely heard of people ingesting it on a regular basis. Most people just use it for external applications.

I went home and happened to go to the Sacramento Food Coop and decided to ask if they carried bentonite clay. They had three different liquid forms that they sold. I asked about powder and they didn't carry an ingestible powder form.

Now I was curious. So I emailed dad. "Where do you get your clay, dad?" I was a bit shocked by his response - a construction supplier. You see, bentonite is also used for a lot of industrial and commercial uses. So my dad was buying big 50 pound bags from a construction company! No wonder it was an ugly grey compared to the nice fine ecru powder from Redmond Clay.

I emailed Redmond Clay and they were nice enough to send both myself and my dad samples. So I've been using it the last few months and will say that you can't even taste it in water.

So why ingest bentonite clay?


There is a ton of info on the internet about bentonite, but here are some basic facts.

- It's naturally found in different locations around the world, including the United States. It was named after Fort Benton, Wyoming, where a large deposit is located.
- Native Americans have been using it for centuries.
- It is not absorbed by the body but instead passes through the body collecting impurities.

Bentonite clay is made up of a high number of tiny platelets, with negative electrical charges on their flat surfaces and positive charges on their edges. When bentonite clay absorbs water and swells up, it is stretched open like a highly porous sponge. Toxins are drawn into these spaces through electrical attraction and bound. Bentonite Clay is effective because it has a negative charge, and most toxins in our body have a positive charge. So it makes Bentonite Clay useful in binding to toxins. Bentonite Clay can absorb any toxic substances imaginable: impurities, harmful bacteria, poisons, pesticides, pathogens, parasites, etc.


Because of the above, bentonite is a cure-all for gastro intestinal issues such as diarrhea, acid reflux, colitis, irritable bowel syndrome, etc. It is often used as a colon cleanse.

How about external uses?

Bentonite also seems to work for many external applications such as aiding in the treatment of burns, rashes, eczema, diaper rash, etc. You just mix it with water and apply it to the skin. You can also apply it to your bath water as porous skin is another avenue for ridding your body of toxins.

Reference Sites:

Redmond Clay
Clay video presentation
Healing Daily
Wikipedia
Colon Zone