The Borax Conspiracy
How the Arthritis Cure has been stopped
Walter
Last
You
may not be able to imagine that borax, this humble insecticide and laundry
detergent, has the potential of singlehandedly bringing down our entire economic
system. But you do not need to worry, the danger has been recognised and the
necessary steps are already being taken to defuse the situation. I will start
with the basics and you will understand what I mean as the story unfolds.
Borax
is a naturally occurring mineral commonly mined from dried salt lakes, and is
the source of other manufactured boron compounds. The main deposits are in
California and Turkey. Chemical names are
sodium tetraborate decahydrate, disodium tetraborate decahydrate,
or simply sodium borate. This means it contains four atoms of boron as its
central feature combined with two sodium atoms and ten molecules (or sometimes
less) of crystallisation water - decahydrate means 10 water
molecules, pentahydrate 5, and anhydrate or anhydrous borax
means no crystallisation water; chemically it is all the same.
Borax
is commonly sold as technical or agricultural grade with 99 to 99.5%
minimum purity. Potential impurities consist of sodium, potassium, calcium,
chloride, bicarbonate, carbonate, sulphate and phosphate but not toxic or heavy
metals. This grade includes the borax commonly used as household cleaner.
Pharmaceutical grade is not noticeably purer or better.
Borax
is the sodium salt of the weak boric acid. Because sodium is more strongly
alkaline, this makes a solution of borax strongly alkaline with a pH between 9
and 10 (pH 7 is neutral). When ingested, it reacts with hydrochloric acid in
the stomach to form boric acid and sodium chloride. The boron content of Borax
is 11.3% while for boric acid it is 17.5% or about 50% higher. Ingested boron
compounds are rapidly and nearly completely excreted with the urine. Formerly
boric acid was widely used as a preservative in foods but is now banned for
this purpose in most countries, and is also banned from public sale in
Australia.
According
to conventional medicine it is not known if boron is essential for humans but
research shows that we do need it. The reason why it was difficult to answer
this question is the presence of boron in all plants and unprocessed foods.
Diets with a fair amount of fruit and vegetables provide about 2 to 5 mg of
boron per day, but this also depends on the region where the food was grown and
how it was grown.
In
reality the average intake in developed countries is 1-2 mg of boron per day.
Institutionalized patients may receive only 0.25 mg of daily boron. Chemical
fertilizers inhibit the uptake of boron from the soil: an organic apple
grown in good soil may have 20 mg boron, but if grown with fertilizer it may
have only 1 mg of boron. Fertilizers combined with poor food choices have
greatly reduced our boron intake compared to 50 or 100 years ago.
Further,
unhealthy cooking methods greatly reduce the availability of boron from food.
The cooking water of vegetables containing most of the minerals may be
discarded during home cooking or commercial processing; phytic acid
in baked goods, cereals and cooked legumes may greatly reduce availability,
while gluten sensitivity and Candida overgrowth inhibit the absorption of minerals.
All this makes health problems due to boron deficiency now very common.
Health Effects of Boron
Due
to their content of boron, borax and boric acid have basically the same health
effects, with good antiseptic, antifungal, and antiviral properties but only
mild antibacterial action. In plants as well as animals boron is essential for
the integrity and function of cell walls, and the way signals are transmitted
across membranes.
Boron
is distributed throughout the body with the highest concentration in the
parathyroid glands, followed by bones and dental enamel. It is essential for
healthy bone and joint function, regulating the absorption and metabolism of
calcium, magnesium and phosphorus through its influence on the parathyroid
glands. With this boron is for the parathyroids what iodine is for
the thyroid.
Boron
deficiency causes the parathyroids to become overactive, releasing
too much parathyroid hormone which raises the blood level of calcium by
releasing calcium from bones and teeth. This then leads to osteoarthritis and
other forms of arthritis, osteoporosis and tooth decay. With advancing age high
blood levels of calcium lead to calcification of soft tissues causing muscle
contractions and stiffness; calcification of endocrine glands, especially the
pineal gland and the ovaries; arteriosclerosis, kidney stones, and
calcification of the kidneys ultimately leading to kidney failure. Boron
deficiency combined with magnesium deficiency is especially damaging to the
bones and teeth.
Boron
affects the metabolism of steroid hormones, and especially of sex hormones. It
increases low testosterone levels in men and oestrogen levels in menopausal
women. It also has a role in converting vitamin D to its active form, thus
increasing calcium uptake and deposition into bone and teeth rather than
causing soft tissue to calcify. Also other beneficial effects have been
reported such as improvement of heart problems, vision, psoriasis, balance,
memory and cognition.
The
German cancer researcher Dr Paul-Gerhard Seeger has shown that cancer commonly
starts with the deterioration of cell membranes. As boron is essential for cell
membranes and boron deficiency widespread, this may be an important cause for
the initiation of tumour growth. Boron compounds have anti-tumour properties
and are "potent anti-osteoporotic, anti-inflammatory, hypolipemic,
anti-coagulant and anti-neoplastic agents" (1).
This
overview shows the wide-ranging influence of boron on our health. In the
following I want to describe some of these health effects in greater detail.
The Arthritis Cure of Rex Newnham
In
the 1960's Rex Newnham, Ph.D., D.O., N.D, developed arthritis. At that time he
was a soil and plant scientist in Perth, Western Australia. Conventional drugs
did not help, so he looked for the cause into the chemistry of plants. He
realized that plants in that area were rather mineral deficient. Knowing that
boron aids calcium metabolism in plants he decided to try it. He started taking
30 mg of borax a day, and in three weeks all pain, swelling and stiffness had
disappeared.
He
told public health and medical school authorities about his discovery but they
were not interested. However, some people with arthritis were delighted as they
improved. Others were scared to take something with a poison label on the
container and meant to kill cockroaches and ants. Eventually he had tablets
made with a safe and effective quantity of borax.
Within
five years and only by word of mouth he sold 10,000 bottles a month. He could
no longer cope and asked a drug company to market it. That was a major mistake.
They indicated that this would replace more expensive drugs and reduce their
profits. It so happened that they had representatives on government health
committees and arranged that in 1981 Australia instituted a regulation that
declared boron and its compounds to be poisons in any concentration. He was
fined $1000 for selling a poison, and this successfully stopped his arthritis
cure from spreading in Australia. (2)
Subsequently
he published several scientific papers on borax and arthritis. One was a
double-blind trial in the mid 1980's at the Royal Melbourne Hospital which
showed that 70% of those who completed the trial were greatly improved. Only
12% improved when on placebo. There were no negative side-effects, but some
reported that their heart ailment had also improved, and there was better
general health and less tiredness. (3)
Most
of his later research was devoted to the relationship between soil boron levels
and arthritis. He found, for instance that the traditional sugarcane islands,
due to long-term heavy use of fertilizers, have very low soil-boron levels.
Jamaica has the lowest level and arthritis rates are about 70%. He noted that
even most dogs were limping. Next comes Mauritius with very low boron
levels and 50% arthritis. The daily boron intake in these countries is less
than 1 mg/day. An interesting comparison is between Indian and native Fijians.
The Indians are estimated to have an arthritis rate of about 40% and eat much
rice grown with fertilizer while the native Fijians with an estimated arthritis
rate of 10% eat mainly starchy root vegetables grown privately without
fertilizer.
The
US, England, Australia and New Zealand generally have average soil-boron levels
with an estimated intake of 1 to 2 mg of boron and arthritis rates of about
20%. But Carnarvon in Western Australia has high boron levels in soil and
water, and the arthritis rate is only 1%. It is similar in a place
called Ngawha Springs in New Zealand with very high boron levels in
the spa water which is curative for arthritis. Actually all spas reputedly
curing arthritis have very high boron levels. These are also high in Israel
with an estimated daily boron intake of 5 to 8 mg and only 0.5 - 1% arthritis.
Bone
analysis showed that arthritic joints and nearby bones had only half the boron
content of healthy joints. Equally, synovial fluid that lubricates joints and
provides nutrients to the cartilage is boron deficient in arthritic joints.
After boron supplementation bones were much harder than normal and surgeons
found them more difficult to saw through. With additional boron bone fractures
heal in about half the normal time in both man and animal. Horses and dogs with
broken legs, or even a broken pelvis, have fully recovered.
Borax
is also effective with other forms of arthritis, such as Rheumatoid Arthritis,
Juvenile Arthritis, and Lupus (Systemic Lupus Erythematosus). For instance Dr
Newnham saw a young girl aged 9 months with juvenile arthritis. He was able to
cure her in 2 weeks.
He
wrote that commonly people can get rid of their pain, swelling and stiffness in
about 1 to 3 months. Then they can reduce treatment from 3 to 1 boron tablet
(each 3 mg) per day as a maintenance dose so that they can avoid any
future arthritis. He also stated that patients with rheumatoid arthritis
commonly experienced a Herxheimer reaction and that this is always a
good prognostic sign. They must persevere and in another 2 or 3 weeks the pain,
swelling and stiffness will be gone. (4,5)
I
found this statement not only interesting but also surprising.
The Herxheimer reaction is an early aggravation of symptoms with
increased pain. It is commonly due to toxins released by killed Candida and
mycoplasma. This is very common with antimicrobial therapy, and borax
definitely is an exceptionally good and strong fungicide. What
surprises me, however, is that this fungicidal effect can be already present at
this rather low dose of 75 to 90 mg of borax. Equally surprising is the finding
that also up to 30% of those with osteoarthritis experienced
a Herxheimer reaction, suggesting that the border between
osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis is rather fluid. I believe that in
long-standing and especially resistant cases it will be advisable to use other
antimicrobials in addition. For co-factors in arthritis treatment
also see my article Arthritis and
Rheumatism or the booklet OVERCOMING ARTHRITIS.
Osteoporosis and Sex Hormones
Boron deficiency causes greatly
increased amounts of calcium and magnesium to be lost with the
urine. A borax supplement will reduce the daily loss of calcium by nearly 50%.
As this calcium comes mainly from resorbed bone and teeth, boron deficiency may
be the most important factor in causing osteoporosis and tooth decay.
It has been estimated that 55% of
Americans over 50 have osteoporosis and of these about 80% are women. Worldwide
1 in 3 women and 1 in 12 men over the age of 50 may have osteoporosis, and this
is responsible for millions of fractures each year. Rats with osteoporosis were
given a boron supplement for 30 days with the result that their bone quality
was now comparable with that of the healthy control group and of a group
supplemented with oestradiol (6).
The beneficial effect of borax on
bones seems to be due to two interrelated effects: a higher boron content of
the bones which makes them harder, and a normalisation of sex hormones which
stimulates the growth of new bone. Low oestrogen levels after menopause are
thought to be the main reason why so many older women develop osteoporosis. In
men testosterone levels decline more gradually which seems to be reflected
in their later onset of osteoporosis as a group.
Research has now shown that boron
supplementation in postmenopausal women doubles the blood level of the most
active form of oestrogen, 17-beta oestradiol, to the level found in women on
oestrogen replacement therapy. Equally, the blood levels of testosterone more
than doubled (7). With HRT there is a higher risk of breast or endometrial
cancer which is not known to happen with hormones produced by the body as with
borax supplementation.
Some women get premenstrual
problems because oestrogen levels are too high and progesterone too low, and
therefore may be afraid of using boron. However, I found no evidence that boron
raises oestrogen above normal healthy levels. Boron may balance levels of sex
hormones similar to the action of maca root
powder. Maca acts on the pituitary gland not only to increase but
also to balance our sex hormones and seems to stimulate our own progesterone
production as needed.
A recent study in younger men (29
- 50) showed that the level of free testosterone (the form that matters most)
had risen by one third after a daily supplementation of about 100 mg of borax
for one week (8). This is of special interest for bodybuilders.
Contrary to the medical
preference of chemically castrating men with prostate cancer, research with
boron has shown that elevated testosterone levels are beneficial by shrinking
prostate tumours and PSA levels, PSA being a marker for tumours and
inflammation in the prostate. Also significantly improved memory and cognition
in elderly individuals may be partly due to increased levels of sex hormones
and partly to improved membrane functions of brain cells (9).
I have been asked about boron
supplementation for women with oestrogen-sensitive breast cancer. Breast cancer
is related to calcifications in the breast. In my opinion it is more important
to normalize the calcium-magnesium metabolism and cellular membrane functions
rather than feel restricted by a possibly faulty medical concept, especially as
I believe that cancer can usually be controlled with long-term antimicrobial
therapy. Therefore I would use boron as well as Maca in this case.
Fungi and Fluoride
Being such an excellent fungicide
it is not surprising that borax is being successfully used to treat Candida.
There is much interesting information on an Earth Clinic forum called Borax
Cures (10). With low to medium-weight people use 1/8 teaspoon of borax powder
and with heavier weight 1/4 teaspoon per litre of water. One drinks the water
spaced out during the day, and does this for 4 or 5 days a week as long as
required.
Many contributors wrote that it
cured or greatly helped them. So for instance this post: "I also have
psoriasis, so maybe the soreness in my joints is the psoriatic arthritis
creeping in. I thought, after reading about borax here on this forum, I would
give it a try. OMG! In one day, the soreness in my knees has vanished! ....
Also, my psoriasis seems a lot better after 2 days drinking 1/4 tsp borax in 1
litre of water per day."
Another one about toe fungus: "He
wet his feet and then took a handful (of borax) and rubbed it all over his
feet. He said it stopped itching immediately! He was stunned. A few weeks later
I asked him how his Athletes foot was and he said: oh wow! it hasn't
come back! that stuff totally cured it !!!"
Other enthusiastic posts were
about vaginal thrush. Borax appeared to be more effective than other remedies.
Commonly one large gelatine capsule filled with borax or boric acid was
inserted at bedtime for several nights or up to 2 weeks. Alternatively the
powder can be mixed with cool solidified coconut oil as a bolus or suppository.
A recent scientific study (11)
confirms these positive observations with vaginal thrush. Boric acid at the
dose of a filled capsule worked even in cases of drug-resistant Candida and
against all the tested pathogenic bacteria. Because of the greater dilution, a
douche may not be strong enough for bacteria and drug-resistant Candida but it
should work for normal Candida. Borax, due to its alkalinity, was more effective
than boric acid.
In normal healthy conditions
Candida exists as harmless oval yeast cells. When challenged, chains of
elongated cells called pseudohyphae develop, and finally strongly invasive
long, narrow and tube-like filaments called hyphae. These damage the intestinal
wall, and cause inflammation and Leaky Gut Syndrome. Pseudohyphae and hyphae
can be seen in the blood of individuals with cancer and autoimmune diseases.
Candida can also form tough layers of biofilm. This same study shows that boric
acid/borax inhibits the formation of biofilms and also the transformation of
harmless yeast cells into invasive hyphal form. In other articles I have shown
that this process, commonly initiated by antibiotics, is a basic cause of most
of our modern diseases, and this makes borax and boric acid primary health
remedies. But this article shows that there are many more reasons to give them
a top rating.
A scientific review in 2011
concluded: "... boric acid is a safe, alternative, economic option for
women with recurrent and chronic symptoms of vaginitis when conventional
treatment fails..." (12). But as it is so much better than drugs why not
use it as a first option, or use the even more effective borax?
Another study from Turkey (13)
shows the protective effect of boric acid on food contaminated
with mycotoxins, especially fungal aflatoxins. Among these, Aflatoxin
B1 (AFB1) causes extensive DNA damage and is the most potent carcinogen
ever tested, especially affecting liver and lungs, also causing birth
defects, immune-toxicity and even death in farm animals and humans. Boric acid
treatment was protective and led to increased resistance of DNA to oxidative
damage induced by AFB1. The strong antifungal action of boric acid is, of
course, the reason why it has traditionally been used as a food preservative.
I received numerous appreciative
communications ranging from cancelling surgery for hip replacement to removing
brain fog, and curing autoimmune diseases. One woman wrote in a recent Nexus
Magazine of curing her Lupus and serious kidney disease in 4 month with half a
teaspoon of daily borax powder.
Borax, similar to the equally
endangered Lugol's iodine solution, can also be used to remove accumulated
fluoride and heavy metals from the body (14). Fluoride not only causes bones to
deteriorate, but also the pineal gland to calcify and the thyroid to become
underactive. Borax reacts with fluoride ions to form boron fluorides which are
then excreted in the urine.
In a Chinese study borax was used
to treat 31 patients with skeletal fluorosis. The amount was gradually
increased from 300 to 1100 mg/day during a three month period, with one week
off each month. The treatment was effective with 50 to 80% improvement.
One forum contributor suffered
with Fibromyalgia/Rosacea, chronic fatigue and TMJ for over 10 years which she
believed was caused by fluoride. She used 1/8 tsp of borax and 1/8 tsp of sea
salt in a litre of de-chlorinated water, and drank this for 5 days each week.
Within two weeks her face cleared, the redness faded, body temperature
normalized, energy level increased, and she steadily lost excess weight. The
only side-effect was an initial aggravation of her Rosacea symptoms.
Another post: "7 years ago
thyroid cancer, the next year adrenal fatigue, then early menopause, the
following year uterine prolapse followed by hysterectomy - the following year
fibromyalgia and neuropathy. Early Childhood was fluorinated water along with
fluoride tablets. Fall of 2008 I was looking at total disability. I could
barely walk and couldn't sleep because of the pain and was throwing up daily
from the pain in my back. ... After reading about fluoride I came to understand
where all of my problems originated. ... I began the borax detox of 1/8 tsp in
a litre of water and within 3 days my symptoms were almost gone."
Calcium-Magnesium Metabolism
There is antagonism as well as
cooperation between calcium and magnesium. About half of the total body
magnesium is found in bones and the other half inside the
cells of tissues and organs. Only 1% is in the blood, and the kidneys try to
keep this levels constant by excreting more or less with the urine.
In contrast, 99% of calcium is in
bones, and the rest in the fluid outside of cells. Muscles
contract when calcium moves into the cells, and they relax when calcium is
again pumped out and magnesium moves in. This cellular pump requires much
energy to pump calcium out, and if cells are low in energy, then calcium may
accumulate inside cells. Low cellular energy may be due to Candida, faulty
sugar or fat metabolism, deficiencies, or accumulating metabolic wastes and
toxins.
This then leads to only partial
relaxation of the muscles with stiffness, a tendency to cramps, and poor blood
and lymph circulation. The problem gets worse the more calcium moves from bones
into soft tissue. Nerve cells can also accumulate calcium, leading to faulty
nerve transmission, in the lens it causes cataracts, hormonal output keeps
reducing as endocrine glands increasingly calcify, and all other cells become
handicapped in their normal functions. In addition it causes intracellular
magnesium deficiency. Magnesium is needed to activate countless enzymes, and a
deficiency leads to inefficient and blocked energy production.
A further problem is that excess
calcium damages the cell membrane and makes it difficult for nutrients to move
in and wastes to move out. When the intracellular calcium level gets too high
the cell will die.
Here we can see the importance of
boron as a regulator of cell membrane functions, especially in regard to
movements of calcium and magnesium. With boron deficiency too much calcium
moves into the cell while magnesium cannot move inside to displace it. This is
the condition of old age and of the boron-deficiency diseases leading up to it.
While in good health and
especially in younger years a calcium - magnesium ratio of 2 : 1 is
normal and beneficial and supplied with a good diet. But with increasing age,
boron deficiency and resulting disease conditions we need progressively less
calcium and more magnesium.
For boron to be fully effective
in reversing tissue calcification ample magnesium is required. For elderly
individuals I recommend 400 to 600 mg of magnesium together with the daily
borax supplementation spaced out during the day, and with protracted joint
problems additional trans-dermal magnesium. However, oral magnesium may need to
be adjusted according to its laxative effect. I am doubtful whether calcium
supplements are needed and beneficial, even in case of osteoporosis. In my view
these individuals have plenty of calcium stored in soft tissues where it does
not belong, and supplementing boron and magnesium is expected to redeposit this
misplaced calcium into bones. I regard the medical focus on a high calcium
intake as a prescription for accelerated aging.
What and How Much to Use
In some countries (e.g.
Australia, NZ, USA) borax can still be found in the laundry and cleaning
sections of supermarkets. There is no "food-grade" borax available or
necessary. All borax is the same and "natural", and usually mined in
California or Turkey, whether it has been packed in China or any other country.
The label usually states that it is 99% pure (or 990g/kg borax) which
is safe to use, and is the legal standard for agricultural grade borax. Up to
1% mining and refining residues are permitted. Boric acid, if available, may be
used at about ⅔ the dose of borax, it is not for public sale in Australia.
Use as essential Mineral: Firstly
dissolve a lightly rounded teaspoonful (5-6 grams) of borax in 1 litre of good
quality water. This is your concentrated solution keep it out of reach of
small children.
Standard dose = 1
teaspoon (5 ml) of concentrate. This has 25 to 30 mg of borax and provides about
3 mg of boron. Take 1 dose per day mixed with drink or food. If
that feels right then take a second dose with another meal. If
there is no specific health problem or for maintenance you may continue
indefinitely with 1 or 2 doses daily.
If you do have a problem, such as
arthritis, osteoporosis and related conditions, cramps or spasms, stiffness due
to advancing years, menopause, and also to improve low sex hormone production,
increase intake to 3 or more spaced-out standard doses for several months or
longer until you feel that your problem has sufficiently improved. Then drop
back to 1 or 2 doses per day.
For treating Candida, other
fungi and mycoplasmas, or for removing fluoride from the body
- using your bottle of concentrated solution:
Low dose for
low body weight: 100 ml or 1/8 teaspoon of borax powder or 500 mg; best with or
after main carbohydrate meal.
Medium dose for
heavier individuals or more pervasive Candida: 200 ml or 1/4 teaspoon/1000 mg
of borax powder; take with or after 2 meals.
High dose for
strong fungal/Candida problems such as autoimmune diseases, cancer or dementia:
½ tsp of borax powder mixed with food.
Always start with a lower dose
and increase gradually to the intended or effective maximum. Take the effective
amount as long as required for 4 or 5 days a week, or interrupt for one week
each month, or periodically alternate between borax and another
fungicide.
For vaginal thrush fill a large
size gelatine capsule with borax and insert it at bedtime for one to two weeks.
With toe fungus or athlete's foot wet the feet and rub them with borax powder.
You may take borax mixed with
food or in drinks. It is rather alkaline and in higher concentrations has a
soapy taste. You may disguise this with lemon juice, vinegar or ascorbic acid.
Restrictions in the EU
In Europe borax and boric acid
have been classified as reproductive poisons, and officially since December
2010 are no longer available to the public within the EU. Presently borax is
still available in Switzerland (15), but shipment to Germany is not permitted.
In Germany a small amount (20 - 50 grams) may be ordered through a pharmacy as
ant poison, it will be registered. Borax is presently still available from www.ebay.co.uk and can be shipped to other EU
countries. Also, as leader of the pharmaceutical industry in Europe, Germany is
very strict in controlling borax for non-commercial use while some other EU
countries are completely ignoring the ban on borax.
Boron tablets can be bought from
health shops or the Internet, commonly with 3 mg of boron. In some European
countries, such as The Netherlands, these may still contain borax, but not in
others, such as Germany, where boron is not allowed in ionic form as with borax
or boric acid. While suitable as a general boron supplement, I do not know if
or how well they work against Candida and mycoplasmas. Most scientific studies
and individual experiences in regard to arthritis, osteoporosis, or sexual
hormones and menopause were with borax or boric acid. It is not yet known if
non-ionic boron is as effective as borax. To improve effectiveness I recommend
3 or more spaced-out boron tablets daily for an extended period combined with
sufficient magnesium and a suitable antimicrobial program (16).
Possible Side-Effects
While side-effects from
pharmaceutical drugs tend to be negative and often dangerous, with natural
medicine such as borax therapy these are usually healing reactions with
beneficial long-term effects. Most common is the Herxheimer reaction
from eliminating Candida. This is the main cause of pain or discomfort in the
digestive system when starting with borax supplementation.
In some of the above forum posts
rapid improvement was experienced within days. This is always a functional
response. High cellular calcium levels cause muscle contraction with cramps or
spasms as a common cause of pain. Boron, especially together with magnesium,
can rapidly relax these muscles and take away the pain.
However, with long-standing
severe calcifications a large amount of calcium cannot be redistributed in a
short time. This leads to increased calcium levels in the affected area,
especially the hips and shoulders, and can cause problems for a considerable
time, such as a tendency to severe cramping and pain, or problems with the
blood circulation, or nerve transmission. Nerve-related effects in hands and
feet may be numbness, or reduced sensitivity or feeling in the skin. Higher
amounts of calcium and fluoride passing through the kidneys may cause temporary
kidney pain. Further, kidney pain appears to be mainly due to kidney stones
being released. After a few days the stones are usually cleared and the pain
stops.
Such healing reactions cannot be
avoided when aiming for a higher level of health, but they can be minimized by
increasing borax levels only gradually. Whenever you experience an unpleasant
effect reduce or temporarily stop borax intake until the problem subsides. Then
gradually start increasing again. Helpful additional measures are a greatly increased
fluid intake, using more organic acids such as lemon juice or vinegar, and
improving lymph flow as with rebounding, walking or inverted positions.
Toxicity Issues
Government health agencies are concerned about boron toxicity. You might be concerned as well if you read the following, pertaining to sodium chloride or table salt (17): 'Acute oral toxicity (LD50 - the dose at which half of the tested animals die): 3,000 mg/kg [Rat]. Chronic Effects on Humans: Mutagenic for mammalian somatic cells. Slightly hazardous in case of skin contact, ingestion or inhalation. Lowest Published Lethal Oral Dose in Man: 1000 mg/kg. Causes adverse reproductive effects in humans (fetotoxicity, abortion) by intraplacentalroute, may increase risk of Toxemia of Pregnancy in susceptible women. May cause adverse reproductive effects and birth defects in animals, particularly rats and mice - fetotoxicity, abortion, musculoskeletal abnormalities, and maternal effects (on ovaries, fallopian tubes). May affect genetic material (mutagenic). Ingestion of large quantities can irritate the stomach with nausea and vomiting.
May affect behavior (muscle spasicity/contraction, somnolence),
sense organs, metabolism, and cardiovascular system. Continued exposure may produce
dehydration, internal organ congestion, and coma.'
Now compare the sodium chloride
toxicity with the Material Safety Data Sheet or MSDS for borax (18): 'Low acute
oral toxicity; LD50 in rats 4,500 to 6,000 mg/kg of body weight.
Reproductive/developmental toxicity: Animal feeding studies in rat,
mouse and dog, at high doses, have demonstrated effects on fertility and
testes. Studies with boric acid in the rat, mouse and rabbit, at high doses,
demonstrate developmental effects on the fetus,
including fetal weight loss and minor skeletal variations. The doses
administered were many times in excess of those to which humans would normally
be exposed. No evidence of carcinogenicity in mice. No mutagenic activity was
observed in a battery of short-term mutagenicity assays. Human epidemiological
studies show no increase in pulmonary disease in occupational populations with
chronic exposures to borate dust and no effect on fertility.'
Here you see that table salt is
50 to 100% more toxic than borax, it changes the genetic material and is
mutagenic, while borax is harmless in this regard. Infants are most at risk
from high borax ingestion. It has been estimated that 5 to 10 grams can cause
severe vomiting, diarrhoea, shock and even death, but it also says that lethal
doses are not well documented in the literature.
The following toxicity data are
from documents of the US Environmental Protection Agency and
the Centers for Disease Control(19, 20).
A review of 784 accidental human
poisonings from 10 - 88 grams of boric acid reported no fatalities, with 88% of
cases being asymptomatic, meaning they did not notice anything. However,
gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, hepatic, renal, and central nervous system
effects, dermatitis, erythema, and death have occasionally been observed in
some infants, children and adults exposed to more than 84 mg boron/kg,
corresponding to more than 40 grams of borax for 60 kg of body weight.
Animal studies have identified
reproductive toxicity as the most sensitive effects of boron ingestion.
Exposure of rats, mice, and dogs for several weeks showed some damage to the
testes and sperm at doses of more than 26 mg boron/kg which corresponds to 15
grams of borax/day for 60 kg body weight.
Most at risk is the developing
foetus, and in the studied animals rats were most affected. In one study slight
reductions in the foetal body weight were already found at 13.7 mg boron/kg/day
used during pregnancy. The no effect dose during pregnancy was set at less than
13.7 mg/kg/day corresponding to about 7 grams of borax per day for 60 kg body
weight. With an added safety factor a no effect value of 9.6 mg boron/kg/day
was calculated corresponding to 5 grams of borax for 60 kg.
However, a rat study lasting for
3 generations found no reproductive toxicity or effect on the parents or
offspring at 30 mg boron/kg/day. This dose corresponds to 17 grams of borax for
60 kg ingested for 3 generations! In another 3-generation study no problem was
found at 17.5 mg boron/kg/day, corresponding to 9 grams of borax/60 kg while
the next higher tested borax dose of 58.5 mg/kg/day, corresponding to 30 grams
of borax/60 kg, resulted in infertility. Therefore we can assume that the safe
reproductive dose is about 20 grams/60 kg/day.
Human studies of the possible
association between impaired fertility and high boron levels in water, soil and
dust in a Turkish populations, and boron mining and processing workers, found
no effect. One study even reported elevated fertility rates in borax production
workers as compared to the U.S. national average.
All this is important because
possible reproductive toxicity is the official reason for the present assault
on borax. The sodium chloride MSDS mentioned above also states: "While
sodium chloride has been used as a negative control in some reproductive studies,
it has also been used as an example that almost any chemical can cause birth
defects in experimental animals if studied under the right conditions."
Keep this in mind when you read the following.
The Assault on Borax
Arthritis in its various forms
and its close relative osteoporosis affect about 30% of the population in
developed countries. Osteoporosis is responsible for more long term hospital
care than any other individual disease. This is due to the very high incidence
of fractures, and especially the protracted nature of hip fractures. This is a
main source of income for the medical-pharmaceutical system. If the
boron-magnesium cure for these diseases should become widely known, this vital
income stream would dry up and the system collapse. As this is the biggest and
most profitable industry in the world, this cannot be allowed to happen.
When Dr Newnham discovered the
boron-arthritis cure it was not a big problem for the pharmaceuticals because
news travelled slowly and was easily suppressed. This is very different now
with Internet communication. Most research funding comes from the
pharmaceutical industry, and nothing has come forward to duplicate Dr Newnham's
findings and other positive osteoporosis studies. Instead, funding goes into
the development of patentable boron drugs for limited application as in
chemotherapy, or even to discredit boron. A test-tube experiment found that a
relatively low dose of about 4 grams of borax can damage lymphocytes, just like
an earlier test-tube study showed that vitamin C supplements are
toxic. Most positive borax studies now come from China, Japan and Turkey.
Furthermore, PubMed is a publicly
funded search facility for bio-medical research publications. While other
articles for Newnham R.E. and Zhou L.Y. are still listed, the two important
borax publications mentioned earlier - about the arthritis trial at the Royal
Melbourne Hospital and the treatment of skeletal fluorosis in China - are no
longer listed, but they belong there and obviously had been there originally. I
suspect that they have been deliberately removed to prevent them from being
quoted in other research.
In addition, increasing effort
goes into publicly demonizing borax for its alleged reproductive and infant
toxicity. As an example I recently read an article by a 'senior scientist' of
the supposedly 'green' Environmental Working Group. In it the perceived dangers
of borax were so exaggerated that most comments in effect said: "Thank you
for opening my eyes. I did not know how poisonous and dangerous borax is, I
certainly will not use it anymore in my laundry, or for cleaning my toilet and
kitchen".
This is obviously a deliberate
campaign to make people grateful for banning borax from public sale. For
laundry and cleaning purposes Borax Substitute now replaces the product
previously sold as Borax. The EU has spearheaded this campaign. In June 2010
borax and boric acid were reclassified as “Reprotoxic Category 2“,
suggesting that they may be harmful to the reproductive functions of humans in
high doses, and the product package must display the skull and crossbones
symbol. From December 2010 these products were no longer available for public
sale within the EU. While this classification now applies for all of Europe,
non-EU countries still have some leeway in regard to public sales. This
initiative is part of a Globally Harmonized System of Classification
and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS) which is to be implemented as soon as
possible. Australia is well-advanced on preparing regulations to implement the
GHS for industrial chemicals, with new regulations expected in 2012 (21).
The European Chemicals Agency
gave as reason for their reclassification of boron products (paraphrased):
'The available data do not
indicate major differences between laboratory animals and humans, therefore it
must be assumed that the effects seen in animals could occur in humans as
epidemiological studies in humans are insufficient to demonstrate the absence
of an adverse effect of inorganic borates on fertility. 17.5 mg boron/kg/day was
derived as a NOAEL (no event level) for male and female fertility. For the rat
decreased foetal weight occurred at 13.7 mg boron/kg/day, and a safe limit of
9.6 mg/kg/day has been derived.' (22)
What they are really saying is
this: 'While we have no human data, animal studies suggest that for adult
reproductive functions a daily ingestion of about 2 teaspoons of borax is safe.
But to be absolutely sure that no-one is harmed, we will ban it completely.'
Importantly, this ruling is not related to borax in foods or supplements where
it is already banned, but only for general use as in laundry or cleaning
products or as insecticides. Because borax is not readily inhaled or absorbed
through intact skin, it is difficult to see how even a few milligrams daily could
get into the body with the conventional use. If the same standard would apply
to other chemicals there would be none left.
The key study in this assessment
was published in 1972. Why is this being dug up now to justify banning borax
when it was of no concern for the past 40 years? It does not make any
scientific sense, especially if you consider that the main chemical in the new
borax substitute, sodium percarbonate, is about three times more toxic
than borax. Acute oral LD50 values for animals are from 1034 to 2200 mg/kg/day
(23). Even the commonly used sodium bicarbonate, with an animal LD50 of 3360
mg/kg, is nearly twice as toxic as borax (24). Both of these chemicals have not
been tested for long-term reproductive toxicity at the high doses that caused
fertility problems in rats and mice.
The
same applies to washing powders, it has been stated that no toxicity is
expected if used in the approved way, or that reproductive tests have not been
done. Ingredients in these products are more toxic than borax, why can they be
used in the approved way but not borax? And how about really toxic items
such as caustic soda and hydrochloric acid? Why do they remain available
to the public when one of the safest household chemicals is banned despite the
fact that it is absolutely impossible to cause any reproductive harm with the
approved use?
Regardless
of the lack of any scientific credibility, the stage has been set for borax and
boric acid to be globally removed from public sale at short or no notice. Even
low-level and less effective boron tablets are now tightly controlled by the
pharmaceutical industry, and may be restricted at any time through
Codex Alimentarius regulations. With this the medical-pharmaceutical
system has safely defused any potential danger that borax may have posed to its
profitability and survival.
Note:
This
article is not about curing arthritis. Boron is essential for healthy bones and
joints, and supplements may be able to help with arthritis, but chronic
conditions often are associated with additional other deficiencies, allergies,
microbial infestations and inflammation. All of these factors may need to be
addressed. For further information see Arthritis and Rheumatism or the more detailed Overcoming Arthritis.
REFERENCES
(1) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9638606
(2) http://www.whale.to/w/boron.html
(3) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1566627/pdf/envhper00403-0084.pdf
(4) http://nah.sagepub.com/content/7/2/89.full.pdf
(5) http://www.arthritistrust.org/Articles/Boron
and Arthritis.pdf
(6) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/172591209
(7) http://www.ithyroid.com/boron.htm
(8) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21129941
(9) http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2006/aug2006_aas_01.htm
(10) http://www.earthclinic.com/Remedies/borax.html
(11) http://jac.oxfordjournals.org/content/63/2/325.long
(12) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21774671
(13) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2873987/
(14) http://www.earthclinic.com/CURES/fluoride.html
(15) http://www.supergenial.ch/pi1/pd2.html
(16) http://www.health-science-spirit.com/ultimatecleanse.html
(17) http:/www.sciencelab.com/msds.php?msdsId=9927593
(18) http://www.hillbrothers.com/msds/pdf/n/borax-decahydrate.pdf
(19) http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxprofiles/tp26-c2.pdf
(20) http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=EPA-HQ-OPP-2005-0062-0004
(21) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Globally_Harmonized_System_of_Classification_and_Labelling_of_Chemicals
(22) http://echa.europa.eu/documents/10162/17230/supdoc_boric_acid_20100609_en.pdf
(23) http://www.inchem.org/documents/sids/sids/15630894.pdf
(24) http://www.sciencelab.com/msds.php?msdsId=9927258
For this article in Portuguese
see A conspiração do bórax - Como
se impediu a cura da artrite
