Lose Weight by Decreasing Aluminum

Lose Weight by Decreasing Aluminum    

There are two primary energy sources for the body:

·         Carbohydrates in the form of sugars (i.e. glucose) produce energy by glycolysis to make acetyl CoA for the citric acid cycle.

·         Fats in the form of triglycerides produce energy by beta-oxidation to make acetyl CoA for the citric acid cycle.

Carbohydrates and fats are converted to energy in cellular organelles called mitochondria. Energy is produced by both glycolysis and the citric acid cycle.  Environmental toxins can inhibit the production of energy from both carbohydrates and stored fats resulting in obesity. For instance aluminum at a concentration of some drinking water in the U.S. inhibits glycolysis.

Since development of the Bayer process for aluminum purification from bauxite in 1888, there has been a steady increase in the amount of aluminum humans ingest and accumulate.  Aluminum, at levels found in some drinking water (108ppb,108mcg/liter, 4mcM), inhibits hexokinase, an enzyme that catalyzes the first step in carbohydrate  metabolism (i.e. glycolysis)¹.  The biochemical response to the inhibition of glycolysis is the conversion of carbohydrates to fat as triglycerides comprised of long chain fatty acids².  This fat can be stored in adipose tissue or metabolized for energy.  However, aluminum also inhibits the production of L-carnitine required for movement of long chain fatty acids in stored fat to the mitochondria for conversion to energy^3-6.   Therefore aluminum inhibits two key steps in metabolizing carbohydrates and fats for energy generation:

·         Aluminum inhibits the first step of carbohydrate metabolism called glycolysis¹. Inhibition of glycolysis promotes the conversion of carbohydrates to stored fats (e.g. lipogenesis)².

·         Aluminum inhibits the biosynthesis of L-carnitine^3-6. L-carnitine is required for mobilizing stored fat as long chain triglycerides for mitochondrial energy production⁷.

The result of aluminum ingestion is therefore, more fat from carbohydrate, more fat being stored, and less fat being utilized for energy, resulting in obesity that does not respond to dieting.

Ketogenic Diet of Medium Chain Triglycerides for Coping with Aluminum Toxicity

 Switching from a low fat – moderate carbohydrate diet to a high fat – low carbohydrate diet results in higher than normal levels of chemicals called ketones in the blood.  For this reason the high fat diet is called a ketogenic diet.  The source of fat on a ketogenic diet can be from plant and/or animal sources, such as canola oil, coconut oil, and/or beef tallow.  All fats are primarily triglycerides comprised of fatty acids of varying chain length and unsaturation that are esterified to glycerol. These fatty acids are of three types: 

·         Long chain essential fatty acids (e.g. linoleic and alpha-linolenic acids)

·         Long chain non-essential fatty acids (i.e. EPA and 22C DHA)

·         Medium chain fatty acids  (i.e. lauric acid found as 50% of coconut oil)

 History of the Ketogenic Diet

 The fact that the human body can switch from carbohydrates to triglycerides as its primary source of energy is called the “Schwatka Imperative”.  This is named after Lieutenant Frederick Schwatka who volunteered for a 19 month 3,000 mile Arctic mission, taking with him only enough carbohydrate to last 10 months⁸.  On June 15^th of 1879 he ate his last hard bread and then it became imperative that his body switch to a diet of primarily fresh-killed reindeer meat with occasional fish. For the first two or three weeks on the ketogenic diet he felt “… an apparent weakness and inability to perform severe exertive, fatiguing journeys.”  Then miraculously after two to three weeks on the ketogenic diet his strength and stamina returned to normal. For example, during the last two days of the expedition he hiked 75 miles.

 Lieutenant Schwatka was looking for information on why the men of the Franklin Expedition perished in the Arctic a quarter century earlier. Schwatka was lucky he traveled ten years before the Bayer Process for aluminum purification from bauxite was developed in 1888. Since 1888 people in general have been dosed with ever increasing levels of aluminum that is impacting how their mitochondria generate energy.            

 Moderate Carbohydrate Diet with Supplements for Losing Weight and Aluminum

Johnston in 2006 compared 10 overweight people on a low fat and moderate carbohydrate diet with 9 overweight people on a ketogenic diet with high fat and low carbohydrate diet.  The groups were fed diets providing the following percentages of energy:

Moderate Carbohydrate Diet:    30% fat   -   40% carbohydrate   -   30% protein

Ketogenic Diet:   60% fat   -     5% carbohydrate   -   35% protein

After eight weeks the moderate carbohydrate dieters lost more weight than the ketogenic dieters.  The researchers concluded that the ketogenic diet did not offer any significant metabolic advantage over the moderate carbohydrate diet¹².

There are supplements of biochemicals naturally found in your body that taken daily will result in improved stored fat utilization and weight loss.  These supplements are:

·         Dissolved silica (a.k.a. OSA) for lowering your body-burden of aluminum^13-15

·         CoQ10 for improving your energy and cognition¹⁶

·         PQQ for increasing mitochondrial biogenesis and cognition^16-18

 

By lowering aluminum levels in your body, glycolysis and fat metabolism will return to normal.  This coupled with new mitochondria will allow you to metabolize or “burn” stored fat resulting in dieting with weight loss.

 There are also supplements of biochemicals naturally found in your body that will lower LDL and triglycerides, both of which are linked to an increased risk of vascular disease, such as stroke and heart attack: 

·         EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) for reducing triglycerides by 5 to 10%¹⁹

·         PA (palmitoleic acid) for reducing triglycerides by 15% and LDL by 8%²⁰

·         Vitamin D for reducing triglycerides by 23%²¹

Lowering triglycerides and LDL decreases the risk of vascular disease, heart attack, and stroke.  For more details on these supplements see my book “Prevent Alzheimer’s, Autism, and Stroke”²².

Ketogenic Diet with Fat from Medium Chain Triglycerides

Medium chain triglycerides (MCT), as opposed to long chain (i.e. 18 carbon atoms) triglycerides (LCT), do not require L-carnitine for mobilization and conversion into energy by the mitochondria¹⁰.  Therefore the metabolism of MCT is not inhibited by aluminum. Also the oxidative utilization (sum of digestion, absorption, and oxidation) of MCT can be 3 to 4 times greater than for LCT¹⁰.  These results were obtained with animals preconditioned to survive, like Lieutenant Schwatka, on a ketogenic diet¹⁰. 

 

Therefore the modern equivalent of the “Schwatka Imperative” is to either:

·         Remain obese while surviving on a diet of medium chain triglycerides or

·         Lose some weight by decreasing aluminum accumulation and eating a moderate carbohydrate diet.  

Many people are opting for the MCT diet, such as coconut oil, without lowering aluminum.  This will provide more energy and improved cognition. Unfortunately it will not result in weight loss since aluminum is still inhibiting the mobilization and conversion of stored long chain fatty acids to energy. Also:

·         MCT or Coconut oil does not contain essential fatty acids (e.g. linoleic and alpha-linolenic acid)

·         Lauric acid, comprising 50% of coconut oil, increases LDL by 16% in humans and LDL is linked to vascular disease, such as stroke and heart attack¹¹

References

1. Lai, J.C., and Blass, J.P.; Inhibition of brain glycolysis by aluminum; J. Neurochem.; Feb.; 42(2):438-46 (1984)

2. Mailloux, R.J., et al.; Hepatic response to aluminum toxicity: Dsylipidemia and liver diseases; Exper. Cell Res.; 317:2231-2238 (2011)

3. Gaballa, I.F., et al.; Dyslipidemia and disruption of L-carnitine in aluminm exposed workers; Egyptian J. Occup. Med.; 37(1):33-46 (2013)

4. Lemire, J., et al.; The disruption of L-carnitine metabolism by aluminum toxicity and oxidative stress promotes dyslipemia in human astrocytes and hepatic cells; Toxicol. Lett.; Jun.; 203(3):219-26 (2011)

5. Waly, M. I-A., et al.; Activation of methionine synthase by insulin-like growth factor-1 and dopamine: a target for neurodevelopmental toxins and thimerosal; Mol. Psychiatry; 9:358-70 (2004)

6. Waly, M. I-A., and Deth, R.; Neurodevelopmental toxins deplete glutathione and inhibit folate and vitamin B12-dependent methionine synthase activity – a link between oxidative stress and autism, FASEB J.; 22:894 1 (2008)

7. Fritz, I.B., Kaplan, E., Yue, K.T.; Specificity of carnitine action on fatty acid oxidation by heart muscle; Am. J. Physiol.; Jan.; 202:117-21 (1962)

8. Schwatka, F.; The Long Arctic Search; Stackpole, E.A., Editor; No. 44; The Marine Historical Association, Inc.; Mystic, CT (1965)

9. Beattie, O., and Geiger, J.; Frozen in time – The fate of the Franklin Expedition; Bloomsbury (2004)

10. Heo, K.N., et al.; Medium-chain fatty acids but not L-carnitine accelerate the kinetics of [14C]triacylglycerol utilization by colostrum-deprived newborn pigs; J. Nutr.; 132:1989-1994 (2002)

11. Tsai, Y.H., et al.; Mechanisms mediating lipoprotein responses to diets with medium chain triglyceride and lauric acid; Lipids; Sep.; 34(9):895-905 (1999)

12. Johnston, C.S., et al.; Ketogenic low-carbohydrate diets have no metabolic advantage over nonketogenic low-carbohydrate diets; Am. J. Clin. Nutr.; 83:1055-61 (2006)

13. Edwardson, J.A., et al.; Effect of silicon on gastrointestinal absorption of aluminum; The Lancet; 342(8865):211-12 (1993)

14. Carlisle, E.M., and Curran, M.J.; Effect of dietary silicon and aluminum on silicon and aluminum levels in rat brain; Alzheimer Dis. Assoc. Disord.; 1(2):423-30 (2013)

15. Davenward, S,, et al.; Silicon-rich mineral water as a non-invasive test of the 'aluminum hypothesis' in Alzheimers disease; J. Alzheimer's Dis.; 33(2):423-30 (2013)

16. Nakani, M., et al.; Effect of pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ) on mental status of middle-aged and elderly persons; Food Style; 21 13(7):50-3 (2009)

17. Chowanadisai, W., et al.; Pyrroloquinoline quinone stimulates mitochondrial biogenesis through cAMP response element-binding protein phosphorylation and increased PGC-1 alpha expression; J. Biol. Chem.; Jan.; 285(1):142-52 (2010)

18. Onyango, I.G., et al.; Regulation of neuron mitochondrial biogenesis and relevance to brain heath; Biochim Biophys Acta; jan.; 1802(1):228-34 (2010)

19. Bernstein, A.M., et al.; Purified palmitoleic acid for the reduction of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and serum lipids: a double blinded, placebo controlled study; J.Clin. Lipidol.; 8(6):612-7 (2014)

20. Harris, W.S.; n-3 Fatty acids and serum lipoproteins: human studies; A. J. Clin. Nutr.; 65(suppl.):1645S-54S (1997)

21. Rejnmark, L., et al.; Simvastatin does not affect vitamin D status, but low vitamin D levels are associated with dyslipidemia; Results from a randomized, contolled trial: Internat. J. Endrocrin.; Article ID 957174 (2010)

22. Crouse, D.N.; Prevent Alzheimer's, autism, and stroke, with 7 supplements, 7 life-style choices, and a dissolved mineral; Etiological Publishing (2016)

My Mom's Aluminum Free Coffee Maker

Before purchasing a coffee maker write to the company and ask if the water comes in contact with aluminum.  Unfortunately manufactures change their manufacturing.  

Update August 2024: My wife Laurie has learned information from a company about aluminum may not be accurate.  

My 91 year old Mom has Alzheimer’s disease.  In an effort to slow and possibly reverse the decline of her short term memory and the progression of her Alzheimer’s disease, I have been helping Mom lower her ingestion of ionic aluminum.  Aluminum ions are neurotoxic, killing neurons and inhibiting the ability of neural networks in the brain to store memories.  

The 7 largest epidemiology studies of aluminum in drinking water concluded that there is a greater risk of Alzheimer’s disease when routinely drinking water or any beverage with greater than 100mcg per liter of ionic aluminum.  This data convinced the World Health Organization to set a 100mcg per liter maximum limit of aluminum in drinking water.

Before age 77 people with Alzheimer’s accumulate aluminum faster than normal, partially accounting for why some of them have early onset Alzheimer’s.  But all people older than 77 accumulate aluminum faster than normal accounting for why in the U.S. one in three people over 80 have Alzheimer’s.  Therefore it is preventative to remove daily sources of aluminum ions from the diet and drinking water of everyone and particularly the elderly.

Surprisingly one of mom’s daily sources of aluminum is her Black & Decker drip style coffee maker (Model 1050).  After removing the safety screws on the bottom of the coffee maker, I found a heated horseshoe shaped aluminum tube that heats all the water that flows from the reservoir to the carafe.  In the process of heating the water, the inside of the hot metallic aluminum corrodes adding neurotoxic aluminum ions to the resulting coffee. 

Bottom view of Black & Decker Model 1050W With Bottom Plate Removed

 In order to find how much aluminum was added to mom’s coffee by the Model 1050 coffee maker, I tested and compared the aluminum concentration in water both before being added to the coffee maker and after being heated and passed into the carafe. I found the amount of aluminum added by Mom’s coffee maker to be extremely disturbing because of Mom’s age and condition and because there are millions of these types of coffee makers being used every day to make aluminum-laced neurotoxic coffee.

As the coffee maker is used, aluminum on the inside of the tube corrodes by pitting, thereby increasing the rate of corrosion.  Also if the coffee maker is used with hard water, a calcium and magnesium carbonate scale forms on the inside of the heated aluminum tube.  This carbonate scale is porous and does not slow the rate of aluminum corrosion.  The B&D Model 1050 used for 1 year with hard water makes coffee with an aluminum level of 264% of the World Health Organization’s maximum level in drinking water. 

Fiji water contains 94ppm of silica. After a coffee maker is used with Fiji water for 1 year, a silica scale forms on the inside of the aluminum tube.  Silica scales are harder and less porous than carbonate scales and reduce the aluminum corrosion rate.  Descaling the B&D Model 1050 with 50% vinegar in water removes both carbonate and silica scales but results in the descaled coffee maker adding even more aluminum to the coffee.

Due to the high level of aluminum found with the used B&D Model 1050, my interest in coffee makers became a temporary obsession. With the help of family and friends I began collecting and testing any coffee maker I could find. As the word of my initial results spread, discarded coffee makers began showing up on my doorstep.  Shockingly I discovered that coffee contacts aluminum in almost all my family and friend’s coffee makers. 

Examples of these coffee makers include the Presto percolator that is all stainless except for a large aluminum nut that holds the heater in place. Also the Krups F253 that is advertised with a brass heating tube but after removing the security screws on the bottom I discovered an aluminum heating tube.  

I also tested the Krups F253 using a single pass with Fiji water and found the aluminum corrosion to be reduced by only 10% to 85mcg/liter.  This shows that the silica scale is slow to form.

After finding such shockingly high aluminum levels in used coffee makers, my goal became trying to find for Mom an electric coffee maker in which the coffee never contacts aluminum.    Just because the manufacturer calls their product a “stainless steel coffee maker” does not mean the coffee never contacts aluminum.  The Jura Capresso MG900 is the only coffee maker found so far that states on the box “coffee never contacts aluminum”.  After much research on the internet and contacting coffee maker manufacturers the following coffee makers were obtained, tested, and found to not add aluminum to coffee:

Any Bunn coffee maker that has an internal stainless steel tank is fine.

Mom used the Krups Moka Brew for several months but ultimately found the carafe to be too hard to unlatch because of her arthritis. Now she uses the BUNN Speed Brew and likes its ease of use.  Both Mom and Dad have said the aluminum-free coffee tastes better than the aluminum-laced coffee.  This is not surprising as many people do not like the metallic taste of aluminum.  What makes me happy is that both Mom and Dad have reduced their aluminum ion ingestion by switching to a coffee maker in which the coffee never contacts aluminum.  This was an important step in reversing the decline of Mom’s short term memory. 

video on coffee makers

Video is made by Dennis 

Here are aluminum free coffee makers:

Updated August 2024 by Laurie Adamson

It is more challenging to find an aluminum free coffee maker.  Ones Dennis tested have been taken off the market.  

Drip Style :

Bunn Speed/Velocity Brew

Percolator: Faberware FCP 240-A (small), Faberware FCP 412 (large)

COLETTI Bozeman Camping Coffee Pot – Coffee Percolator – Percolator Coffee Pot for Campfire or Stove Top Coffee Making – 9 CUP

It appears Keurig has stopped making aluminum free coffee makers. 

Nespresso Type C110 (the aluminum cups have been tested and they are safe) 

If you would like to learn more about other sources of aluminum and other lifestyle choices which will improve cognitive functioning buy Dennis books.  

Buy books

High levels of Aluminum found in brains of people with Autism

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Sources of Aluminum in our daily lives

Silica Water Recipe for Making Homemade Dissolved Silica

                                                                 SILICADE RECIPE

 

Aluminum is a neurotoxin which is the cause of Alzheimer's and Autism.  Silica has been shown to prevent Alzheimer's as silica binds with Aluminum so it can be removed from your body.  

This recipe is in my books:

Prevent Alzheimer's, Autism and Stroke with 7 Supplements, 7 Lifestyle Choices and a Dissolved Mineral

Silica Water the Secret of Healthy Blue Zone Longevity in the Aluminum Age.  

The books are available on Amazon. Buy books

Video -How to make your own silica water

Recipe for 'Silicade' water (silicon 36.5 mg/L) which has about the same amount of silica as Fiji water (silicon 36.5 mg/L).  This will take 15 minutes to prepare.

ORDERING INFORMATION

Sodium Silicate powder - Chemical Store and Z chemicals online 

https://shop.chemicalstore.com/navigation/detail.asp?MySessionID=300-585809627&CatID=&id=SSG 


For international orders


https://zchemicals.com/product/sodium-silicate-low-alkaline/

https://zchemicals.com/

 

If you live outside the United States here is a company that will give you a US address and ship the products to your country.  The company sends to 220 countries.  https://www.myus.com/

Sodium Bisulfate - from amazon: Professor Fullwood of LoudWolf Limited 

https://www.amazon.com/Loudwolf-Sodium-Bisulfate-Microprills-Reagent/dp/B014AQ45DM?crid=3USU0QJNOG6XV&keywords=sodium+bisulfate+loudwolf&qid=1540647187&sprefix=loudwolf+sodium+bisulfate%2Caps%2C314&sr=8-1-fkmrnull&ref=sr_1_fkmrnull_1 

Measuring spoon - dash, smidgen, pinch - Mini Measuring Spoons Set Heavy Duty Stainless Steel Measuring Spoons for Dry or Liquid Ingredients, Fits in Spice Jar - available on amazon

Brand: YellRin

 ASIN    B09J8CDQS4  

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09J8CDQS4?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

Do not use antique dash and smidgen measuring spoons as they may not be correctly calibrated.  

Excerpt from Dennis' book Prevent Alzheimer's, Autism and Stroke and Silica Water the Secret to Healthy Blue Zone Longevity in the Aluminum Age

Preparation of Silicade

Silicade as a Synthetic OSA Rich Silica Water Supplement

Making silicon rich water weekly at home is easy and much less expensive and more sustainable than purchasing water bottled in Fiji or Malaysia.  I call this water “Silicade” and there is a You Tube Video on how to make it at “Silica Water – How to Make it at Home”. Silicade provides 124ppm of dissolved silica to lower your body-burden of aluminum. Silicade preparation requires only two ingredients and a set of small measuring spoons that in the U.S.A. can be purchased online and shipped to your home.  Silicade can be stored indefinitely in the dark like Fiji water.  The chemicals to make Silicade store well and should be kept out of children’s reach:

·         Low Alkalinity Hydrous Sodium Silicate: a hydrous powder available online from ChemicalStore.com. The powder is safer and easier to measure than the liquid form but has the same ratio of 3.22 SiO₂ to Na₂O. The powder has a as a purity of 99.5% and a formula of SiO₂[Na₂O]_1/3.22 H₂O (18.5% water) Mw of 97.25. Only order “sodium silicate – low alkalinity”. Do not order “sodium silicate – alkaline” from the ChemicalStore.com or Zchemicals.com.  This powdery chemical can be stored indefinitely in its screw-cap plastic container but slowly clumps. The clumps are easily converted back to powder with a small mortar and pestle.

Note: This solid sodium silicate from the Chemical Store is Product G manufactured by the PQ Corporation of Valley Forge, PA. Brenntag Specialties (Telephone No. 888-926-4151) buys Product G from PQ Corporation and resells it worldwide as G Sodium Silicate product number 387721 in 50 pound bags. ChemicalStore.com and Zchemicals.com buy this product from Brenntag Specialties and sell it in 2 pound containers online. 

 https://shop.chemicalstore.com/navigation/detail.asp?MySessionID=49-181956636&CatID=&id=SSG

·         Sodium Bisulfate (a.k.a. Sodium Hydrogen Sulfate): a white powder 99.5% pure of micro-prills (i.e. very small pellets) from Professor Fullwood of LoudWolf Ltd. is available from Amazon.  Note: both optional calcium chloride and magnesium chloride are available from the same source.

·         Mini Measuring Spoon Set: Norpro 3061D from Dine Company Online. Currently priced under $4 without shipping. Three measuring spoons come attached to a single ring. Only the dash (1/8 of a teaspoon) and smidgen (1/32 of a teaspoon) are used for Silicade preparation. In order to avoid accidental use of the wrong measuring spoon, remove the pinch from the ring. Note: in the early 2000’s some companies, such as Norpro and Dine, began defining and accurately calibrating the dash and smidgen measuring spoons as precise fractions of a teaspoon. Do not use antique dash and smidgen measuring spoons as they may not be correctly calibrated. 

·         Spatula: Any small spatula with a straight-edge works to level the contents of the measuring spoons prior to addition.

Detailed Instructions with Options for Making Silicade

By following these detailed instructions you can prepare a gallon of Silicade or just follow the “Short Recipe for Silicade” that follows after these detailed instructions:

1)      A level dash and two level smidgens (3/16 of a teaspoon, 600mg) of hydrous powdered sodium silicate is placed in a Pyrex glass measuring cup. Add 1/8 cup of tap water and bring to boiling in the microwave or on the stove, and let boil for 30sec. This powder contains 99.5% water soluble sodium silicate monohydrate and a maximum of 0.5% of water insoluble materials, as required by the American Waterworks Standard B104-98 for adding sodium silicate to drinking water²³.

Note: Do not heat to boiling more than 1/8 cup of tap water as more water will lower the pH making the sodium silicate less soluble.

2)      The hot water with dissolved sodium silicate is immediately diluted to one gallon (3.785 liters) with cold tap water resulting in a 1.29 mM/liter (124ppm) solution of pH 9.8 OSA.

3)      One level dash (1/8 of a teaspoon, 0.83 gr, 6.9 mM) of sodium bisulfate is added to the solution of OSA and dissolved with stirring in order to acidify the solution to pH 4 to 5. Optionally, if tap water is more basic than pH 8.5, use a pH meter while slowly adding a little more sodium bisulfate in order to lower the pH to 4.0-5.0. A pH 7.0 standard solution is recommended for periodic calibration of the pH meter.

4)      The clear colorless acidic solution of OSA is further purified by filtering through a Brita pitcher style filter resulting in OSA at a pH of 4.4. This removes impurities added with sodium silicate and sodium bisulfate.

5)      Two level smidgens of sodium bicarbonate (a.k.a. baking soda) are added and dissolved with stirring in the gallon of filtered OSA, resulting in Silicade with a pH of 6.5, a TDS of 285 at 25^oC, and less than 2mcg/L labile aluminum.  Each quart of Silicade contains 36.5mg of dissolved silicon as 124ppm of monomeric (OSA).

6)      Optionally make Silicade Plus Calcium, if tap water is low in calcium, add two level dashes of calcium chloride flakes or prills (840mg 36% calcium) 99% pure from Loudwolf/Amazon. This will increase the calcium level by 80 ppm, the TDS to 450 at 25^oC, and the pH to 6.6 in a gallon of Silicade + Ca. Labile aluminum in calcium enriched Silicade is less than 2mcg/L. Calcium at concentrations greater than or equal to 75ppm have a significant protective effect on cognition⁴³³.  Optionally in order to increase magnesium by 20ppm add a dash of magnesium chloride hexahydrate (>98% purity) from LoudWolf/Amazon. Optionally make Sparkling Silicade – Carbonating Silicade will result in a pH 4.5 sparkling beverage.

Drink 3 to 4 cups of Silicade a day around meal times in order to provide a total of 25.5 to 34mg of silicon as monomeric OSA. This is 7.7 to 10.3 times the 3.3mg of silicon that when consumed as OSA per day was observed to lower the frequency of AD¹¹⁸.  Silicade contains 124ppm of OSA and in the U.S.A. 160ppm of OSA (i.e. 100ppm of SiO₂) is generally recognized as safe in drinking water²².  

Short Recipe for Silicade

Ingredients needed:

·         Sodium Silicate

·         Sodium Bisulfate

·         Baking Soda (sodium bicarbonate)

Tools needed:

·         Dash measuring spoon = 1/8 tsp

·         Smidgen measuring spoon = 1/32 tsp

·         1 cup Pyrex measuring cup

·         1 gallon measuring container

·         Brita filter -  pitcher style

·         Spatula for leveling

·         Stirring utensil

Steps:

1.      Add 1 level dash & 2 level smidgens of sodium silicate to a one-cup Pyrex container

2.      Add 1/8 cup of tap water to the one-cup Pyrex measuring container

3.      Heat the contents of the Pyrex measuring cup to boiling and boil for at least 30 seconds

4.      Dilute immediately with a small amount of unheated tap water

5.      Pour all the contents of the Pyrex measuring cup into a 1 gallon container

6.      Fill the 1 gallon container with unheated tap water to the 1 gallon mark on the container

7.      Add 1 level dash of sodium bisulfate to the one gallon container

8.      Stir the mixture thoroughly and then filter the mixture through a Brita filter pitcher

9.      After filtering, add 2 level smidgens of baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) to the mixture

10.  Stir Silicade to dissolve the baking soda

11.  Enjoy the health benefits of drinking Silicade!

Silicade can be stored indefinitely in the dark at room temperature or in a refrigerator.

Why This Recipe Works

The goal of this recipe for orthosilicic acid (OSA) in drinking water is to use an easily measured solid silica powder and an acidic microprill that are commercially available online and shipped to anyone, not just chemical laboratories. Both of these chemicals are high purity (e.g. 99.5%). 

·         Solubilize sodium silicate: Boiling powdered sodium silicate for 30 seconds in an eighth of a cup of tap water keeps the pH high enough (e.g. pH = 13) to solubilize silicate^434-436.

·         Neutralize to form OSA and prevent polymerization: In order to form OSA and other silica species in equilibrium with OSA⁴⁸⁹ and to prevent OSA polymerization^435-437, immediately dilute the basic (e.g. pH=13) OSA solution to a gallon with tap water and then immediately render the solution non-hazardous by acidifying the solution to pH 4 to 5 with the solid acid sodium bisulfate. A 1.29mM OSA solution is well below OSA’s saturation level in water (e.g. 2-3mM) but requires 7 days to fully stabilize rising from 108ppm immediately after preparation to 124ppm¹⁷⁴. Polymerization of OSA has been observed at neutral pH only well above OSA’s 200ppm saturation level^435-437.

·         Remove Aluminum: For optimal aluminum removal acidify the OSA solution with sodium bisulfate to pH 4.0 to 5.0 and then filter through a Brita pitcher style filter (OB03)¹⁷⁴. A significant portion (e.g. 98.5%) of the labile aluminum introduced in tap water is removed^174,175.  This Brita filter is a combined activated carbon and weak cation exchange resin that removes cations like aluminum but does not remove OSA¹⁷⁴.  If the tap water used for Silicade is between pH 6.5 to 8.5, as per EPA’s secondary drinking water standard, then after acidification, filtration, and bicarbonate addition Silicade will be pH 6.5. 

·         Optionally add Calcium and/or Magnesium: Have your tap water checked and if it is low in calcium and/or magnesium, add supplemental calcium and/or magnesium to Silicade. The Brita filter reduces calcium and magnesium in Quabbin tap water by one half¹⁷⁵. Drinking water with calcium at levels of 80mg and magnesium at levels of 20 ppm has been found to be optimal for good health⁴³⁸.  This may be due to calcium and magnesium competing with aluminum for absorption by the gut⁴³³.  Calcium catalyzes the polymerization of OSA but only at pH greater than 8^18,19.  Silicade + Ca is pH 6.6 and at this pH OSA in Silicade + Ca is primarily a non-polymeric monomer^174,439.  

Link to FAQ about making the recipe FAQ Silicade

·