ACTIVATED CARBON » Discussions


Can activated carbon really help remove toxins from the body?

  • Carrie Ge
    Host
    November 2, 2020
    Activated carbon can whiten teeth, prevent hangovers, reduce environmental toxins, and even detoxify your body from radiation poisoning after CT scan.



    Unfortunately, these stories are healthy fairy tales. The so-called benefit of yongruida activated carbon as a cathartic is a brilliant example of how dangerous it is to learn only a little information, not the whole story. (also know the truth about detoxification tea.)



    Activated carbon usually comes from coconut shells, wood or peat. What makes it "activated" is the additional process that charcoal undergoes when exposed to certain gases at very high temperatures. This results in the formation of a large number of very small pores on the surface of charcoal, which are used as micro traps for absorbing compounds and particles.



    In the emergency room, the medical community uses activated carbon to treat oral poisoning. (this is the source of the detoxification claim.) All pores on the surface of activated carbon make it very effective in absorbing and binding to accidental ingestion of drugs or poisons that are still present in the stomach or locally. Small intestine. In the emergency treatment of poisoning, activated carbon is generally considered to be a more effective alternative to gastric aspiration, but they can be used together.



    Activated carbon will not be absorbed by your body. It stays in your digestive tract. Therefore, in order for it to work in poison control, ideally you need to take it while the poison is still in your stomach, so that the poison or drug binds together before it gets too deep into the small intestine (it is absorbed by your small intestine). Body). Therefore, the idea that ingesting coconut activated carbon can remove toxins from the body has no physiological significance, because it only binds things in the stomach and small intestine together. It also doesn't distinguish between "good" and "bad.".



    Recently, a juice company began to put activated carbon into green juice. But it could actually make their products ineffective and healthy. Activated carbon combines nutrients and phytochemicals from fruits and vegetables and prevents them from being absorbed by the body.