WITH CORAL CALCIUM SCAM EXPOSED IS SEA SILVER NEXT?

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http://www.billsardi.com/sdm.asp?pg=news & specific=64

 

WITH CORAL CALCIUM SCAM EXPOSED IS SEA SILVER NEXT?

 

 

By Bill Sardi

Copyright 2003

 

The Federal Trade Commission has stopped the marketing of a product called Coral

Calcium Supreme, and blocked TV infomercials, because of unfounded claims the

product cures cancer. And another widely-promoted food supplement may be next in

line for FTC sanctions because both share a similar claim, that cancer can only

exist when cells are starved of oxygen. (There is always an element of truth in

these product claims, and this one is true.)

 

Both SeaSilver, promoted by David R. Friedman, a North Carolina chiropractor and

naturopathic physician, and Coral Calcium Supreme, promoted by Robert Barefoot,

cite the work of Dr. Otto Warberg who discovered that cancer cells produce

energy by abnormal fermentation rather than by respiration of oxygen in normally

healthy cells.

(For more information about oxygen and cancer, see the report on this website on

coral calcium.)

 

Misled About Oxygen

 

One of the SeaSilver websites claims “in 1905 virtually no one had cancer,” and

that “the oxygen at that time has been estimated to have been at 30 percent. In

the 1940's, the oxygen in the atmosphere measured 25 percent, and one out of

twenty Americans had cancer.” Consumers are being misled here. In the year 1905

the lifespan of the average American was 51 years. Since cancer is largely an

age-related disease, Americans weren’t living long enough for cancer to be the

epidemic it is today.

 

Cancer has been around for centuries. Greek physician Hippocrates (460-370 BC)

used the words “carcinos” or “carcinoma” to describe tumors. The Encyclopedia

Brittanica confirms that the oldest recorded description of cancer was

discovered in Egypt and dates back to approximately 1600 BC.

 

Forget SeaSilver. Just Deep Breathe

 

SeaSilver claims it can oxygenate cells because it contains “an astounding 40

percent oxygen.” According to an experiment alleged to have been conducted by

James D. Aker, Director of the 120+ Research Group in Bland, Virginia, SeaSilver

treated by a special sonic energizing method exhibits a “40 percent increase in

oxygen.”

 

A SeaSilver website says the oxygen content of the atmosphere we breathe has

diminished since the early history of the earth (some truth to this since old

rocks that are cracked open exhibit air pockets with more oxygen content). But

are we to assume the intake of more oxygen would prevent cancer? If this were

true, then deep breathing would be called for, and it would be much cheaper!

Humans wouldn’t need SeaSilver!! SeaSilver lists oxygen as one of its

ingredients. Is that the air in the bottle? Species of oxygen, called oxygen

free radicals, produce much of the oxidation (rusting) in the body, which is why

the human body needs antioxidants such as vitamin C and vitamin E. More oxygen,

like obtained in hyperbaric oxygen chambers, requires more antioxidants to

counter side effects.

 

Contrary to the logic behind SeaSilver, air is removed from most packaged food

products and airtight seals are used to prevent spoilage.

 

Is SeaSilver Better Absorbed?

 

SeaSilver’s main claim to fame is that it is better absorbed than vitamin pills.

Yet no evidence is provided for this claim. Just an obscure citation in the

Physicians Desk Reference (page 1542), which is not a scientific publication but

rather a paid-for listing of prescription and non-prescription remedies by

manufacturers, that claims the absorption of vitamin tablets (not capsules) is

inferior. SeaSilver falsely claims the public is wasting 90 percent of their

money on vitamin pills because only 10 percent is absorbed. But are consumers to

blindly conclude that liquid vitamin formulas, which is what SeaSilver is,

exhibit superior absorption?

 

Some studies show liquid vitamins may be absorbed faster than compressed vitamin

tablets, but because nutrients are absorbed a few minutes faster doesn’t

necessarily mean they are superior. The claim “fastest absorbed” means nothing.

 

The primary problems involving absorption of vitamins from pills is either the

(a) tablets are compressed too hard and won’t disintegrate in stomach acid, or

(b) there isn’t enough stomach acid available. [Am J Clin Nut 66: 750-59, 1997]

Gelatin capsules don’t pose the same problem as do rock-hard tablets. In a

recent study, vitamin tablets were shown to effectively deliver nutrients via

absorption in the digestive tract. [J Am College Nutrition 22: 124-32, April

2003]

 

In regards to the unsubstantiated claim that only 10 percent of nutrients are

absorbed from vitamin pills, the human body self-regulates vitamin absorption to

prevent shortages or overdosage. More iron is absorbed when anemic. Almost no

calcium is absorbed beyond a 500 mg single dosage to prevent the body from

becoming too alkaline. Fat-soluble nutrients like beta carotene, lutein and

lycopene, require some dietary fat for absorption. The provision of a liquid

vitamin supplement would not necessarily address these problems.

 

A Myriad of Unfounded Claims

 

There are a myriad of claims made regarding SeaSilver. Examine some of these:

 

SeaSilver literature says a “University of California at Irvine study found that

many psychopaths are consistently deficient in copper and zinc.” Yet the amount

of copper and zinc in SeaSilver is nil. Horrors! All those SeaSilver users are

at risk to become psychopaths!

 

SeaVitamin.com, a purveyor of SeaSilver, cites a 1996 issue of the Journal of

the American Medical Association, which showed that supplemental selenium

reduced the risk of cancer. But a special form of organically-bound selenium

called SelenoExcel given at a 200 microgram dose for six years, was used in that

study. SeaSilver provides an unknown source of selenium in a 50 microgram dose.

 

SeaSilver provides a paltry amount of vitamin B12 (3 micrograms), not enough to

prevent pernicious anemia which many older adults are at risk to develop.

 

SeaSilver says it “purifies the lymphatic system, balances body chemistry and

nourishes at the cellular level,” but these are trite and vague statements. Just

which nutrients do this and what evidence is provided for consumers to examine?

 

SeaSilver claims it is safe for pregnant females and children. In fact,

SeaSilver says it is “completely safe and effective.” Even water is unsafe if

too much is consumed. There is no absolutely safe substance on the planet.

 

Are Multivitamins Needed When Taking SeaSilver?

 

The SeaSilver website claims that there is no need to take a multivitamin in

addition to SeaSilver because it “contains every vitamin, macro mineral, trace

mineral, amino acid and enzyme known to man in nature’s perfect balance.” Yet

there is no lutein in the product, which is a conditionally essential nutrient

for human vision. The amount of zinc in SeaSilver is so small the milligram

strength is not listed on the label. There is no folic acid, niacin or

pantothenic acid (vitamin B5) listed on the label.

 

SeaSilver claims it is designated as a juice product by the Food & Drug

Administration and one website claims it does not contain water as its primary

ingredient, as do other liquid vitamins, but rather features pure aloe vera as

its primary constituent. But aloe has water in it unless it is freeze-dried.

 

What About the Silver From the Sea?

 

And what are consumers to make of the claim that SeaSilver contains silver? One

website says “the Seasilver people discovered that the sea vegetables contained

organic silver and other organic mineral compounds made with minerals that they

extract from the ocean. By concentrating these sea vegetable extracts, Seasilver

now makes a product with 5 parts per million of silver (the dosage that clinical

research has shown to be effective), but derived entirely from organic sources.”

What clinical research?

 

Silver is an undesirable metal that can accumulate in the skin and eyes and

cause a grey-skin condition known as argyria. [Cutis 66: 373-74, 2000] The

Federal Register of August 1999 says: “The Food & Drug Administration is issuing

a final rule establishing that all over-the-counter drug products containing

colloidal silver ingredients or silver salts for internal or external use are

misbranded” because they are “being marketed for numerous serious disease

conditions. The FDA is not aware of any substantial scientific evidence that

supports the use of colloidal silver ingredients or silver salts for these

disease conditions.” [Federal Register 64: 44653-58, 1999]

 

The public cannot be blamed for being gullible since they may simply be

searching for good health and fall for the sales pitch. Obviously this revealing

report about SeaSilver will be condemned by its purveyors. But they had better

not squawk too loudly. SeaSilver is likely to gain the attention of the Federal

Trade Commission, as it did for Coral Calcium Supreme. Remove the phony health

claims and some of the potentially deleterious ingredients, and maybe some of

these types of products might yield health benefits. For example, ingredients in

SeaSilver like cranberry, aloe vera and Pau D’arco, exhibit potential health

benefits.

 

Bill Sardi

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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