Therapeutic Uses of Bentonite Clay

Additional Info

• Segment Number: 3
• Audio File: naturally_savvy/1516ns3c.mp3
• Featured Speaker: Darryl Bosshardt
• Organization: Redmond Trading Company
• Guest Twitter Account: @redmondclay
• Guest Bio: Darryl Bosshardt is the spokesperson for Redmond Trading Company, manufacturer and distributor of Redmond Clay Powder, an all-natural bentonite healing clay that has been used for generations. Darryl grew up working for the family mineral business in Redmond, Utah, and then earned a Bachelors of Science degree at Southern Utah University followed by an MBA at Western Governor's University. In his spare time Darryl enjoys the outdoors, hiking, fishing, canyoneering, beekeeping, and just about anything else he can get is hands on. He currently lives in Heber City, Utah, with his wife and three boys.
• Transcription: RadioMD Presents: Naturally Savvy | Original Air Date: April 15, 2015
  Hosts: Andrea Donsky, RHN & Lisa Davis
  Guest: Darryl Bosshardt
  
  Whether you are new to the living healthy lifestyle or a healthy living veteran, this is the place for the honest answers to your questions. Naturally Savvy with registered holistic nutritionist, Andrea Donsky and health journalist, Lisa Davis, on RadioMD.com
  
  LISA: When I see a blemish coming on my face, I immediately run and get the bentonite clay, mix it with a little water or maybe a little apple cider vinegar. I put it on, I sleep with it and honest to goodness, by morning it's gone down dramatically. It'll get rid of it, right? I mean, but, you know what's so cool, Andrea? I didn't know there were so many neat uses. I've just been using it for my skin, but, apparently, there's lots of cool things and Darryl Bosshardt is here to tell us all about the many therapeutic benefits of bentonite clay.
  
  Hey, Darryl.
  
  DARRYL: Hey! Thanks for having me on today.
  
  ANDREA: Well, we're excited to have you, Darryl, because, first of all, for those of you listening, I've known Darryl for many years and I've used his product, Redmond Clay. It's amazing. I agree with Lisa, putting it on your face, but also taking it internally.
  
  So, we're excited to have you on the show today and I would love you to tell our listeners a little bit about the uses of bentonite clay.
  
  DARRYL: Yes. So, as you kind of started the segment out, almost everybody knows about using the clay for facials. Every spa in the world, pretty much, offers the clay facial and there's a good reason for that. When clay dries topically on the skin, it draws out impurities. So, it actually can lift off blackheads off your nose. It can lift off and deep clean the pores because of the way the clay, when it dries, it draws and it pulls. Just like it draws and it pulls, the other factor which is important to healing in your face is that when the clay does dry and because it is pulling, it actually increases circulation. This is why your face, generally tends to get red and blotchy after this facial because of the way the circulation has been increased. So, removing toxins from the skin and then increasing circulation is nature's one-two punch for healing almost, well, I wouldn't say anything, but a lot of things topically. This is why when elephants get hurt, an elephant doesn't generally run to the vet. He runs to the mud and he rolls in the mud and that mud dries and draws out thorns and pulls out thistles.
  
  ANDREA: Interesting.
  
  DARRYL: And cleans and purifies the skin. Early man noticed this which is why today, you know, every diva since Cleopatra has put clay on her face and many men do, too.
  
  ANDREA: You know, one of the things I love and I remember, Darryl, was when I was pregnant and, by the way, Lisa, Darryl was the first person I emailed when I was pregnant because I was so nauseous and I remember you telling me it was safe to take clay for certain uses and I remember nausea was one of them. Obviously, if someone has an upset stomach. What are some of the internal uses that we can use clay for, and also, how much should we be taking in order for it to be effective?
  
  DARRYL: Great questions. So, just as long as mankind has been using clay externally and animals have been using clay externally, they've been using it just as long for internal applications. There are really 4 things that make clay work effectively inside and we'll hurry and run through each of those. The first is that clay, under a microscope, looks like and acts like activated charcoal. Many of your listeners have probably used activated charcoal or heard about it for stomach upset or for gas, things like that, because of the way the activated charcoal binds stuff to it or draws stuff into it like a sponge. Well, the clay works very similarly to activated charcoal in the way that it draws stuff into it like a sponge.
  
  Now, the difference is that with clay, we also have a negative charge. So, clay is really strong negatively charged. Everything in chemistry is a cat-ion or an anion and so things that are negatively charged will draw stuff positively charged to it like a magnet. Not only does the clay work like a sponge, it actually works like a magnet. This is why if you go in the health food stores, you'll find clay in the detox section because of the way that it draws metals and toxins to it. There's a lot of research on how clay draws cadmium, lead, a lot of these toxins in our bodies, you can detoxify with the negatively charged particle in the clay. Then, the last two are clay is very alkaline--the right kind and when I say clay, I'm not suggesting that any of your listeners go out and just grab a handful of dirt in their back yard because there are different kinds of clay. But the right kind of clay has a high pH and so it can block stomach acid and also it can neutralize that acid because it is so alkaline. Clay is also really rich in minerals. So, because it works like a sponge and draws like a magnet, is rich in minerals and it has a high alkalinity, this is why it's so helpful for stomach upset, nausea and several internal issues.
  
  LISA: Now, how does one find a good clay? Like what characteristics should they look for in terms of internal and external use?
  
  DARRYL: Yes. So, for clay that is for the healing clays, the term is “bentonite”. You mentioned that term before. It also tends to be used synonymously with the term “montmorillonite”. So, when you go into the health food store or a beauty salon, you want to look for a bentonite or a montmorillonite clay. For internal use, you want to make sure the clay's been handled and prepared using food grade practices so it's not being treated and been stuffed with other chemicals. You know, clay is used industrially and in some sense, they add things to do it that you probably don't want to put on your face or in your mouth. So, clay that's been prepared for clean food use and cosmetic use as well as one that's sold under the name of bentonite or montmorillonite.
  
  ANDREA: Now, Darryl, can clay contain any heavy metals like lead or things that we shouldn't be putting into our bodies?
  
  DARRYL: Yes. Absolutely. Some of those things are added by man, like I mentioned before, in the processing, but then, because clay is an earth-based mineral and we live on the earth, there are all of the elements from the earth, pretty much, in the clay in trace amounts. So, there is trace amounts of lead in the clay; trace amounts of other minerals and elements in there as well. The important thing, though, goes back to this negative charge I was telling you about before.
  
  So, even though there is a trace amount of naturally occurring lead because it's from the uric in the clay, the form that it's in is not bio available. The FDA says very little, if any, of the clay can be absorbed by the body. Not only that, because the clay is so negatively charged, there are studies—peer-reviewed, Pub Med studies--that show that clay actually removes lead from hair, body, tissues, blood, even though there is a trace amount of naturally occurring lead there.
  
  ANDREA: I had a feeling you were going to say that which is so interesting. I'm very happy to hear that. Now, let's talk a little bit about how much to do and how to take it. I remember someone was telling me...I know there's an actual liquid clay, but you can also get capsules. If you were taking the capsules, do you just take it straight as a capsule or should you open it put it in water so that it can help activate the clay and how much should we be taking if we want daily prevention?
  
  DARRYL: Great questions. So, the original author on clay was a French naturopath. His name was Raymond Dextreit and he wrote a book—an excellent book—called, Our Earth, Our Cure. In his book, he recommended a teaspoon of dried clay a day. So, in our encapsulated product, that's about 3 capsules or you can just get a teaspoon of the powder. The powdered clay is less expensive just because it hasn't had to have been encapsulated. That's a great place to start—just a teaspoon a day and you can mix it in a glass of water or you can take the capsules as they are. We have some great videos on how to use clay internally and externally at YouTube. You just go to YouTube and search for “Redmond Clay” and there is lots of good information there.
  
  LISA: Now, I understand that you folks make a clay toothpaste. Tell us about this.
  
  DARRYL: Yes, so for years, I've tried to find a toothpaste that I could feel good about using for myself and my kids and I couldn't find one I was really jazzed about. So, growing up, maybe because my dad was a genius or maybe because he was cheap, we actually brushed our teeth with a combination tooth powder made with 50% clay and 50% Real Salt. It's our brand of natural sea salt and it works great and a few years ago, I was wanting to get back to that and thought, “You know what, it doesn't taste all that great.” So, we decided to make our own toothpaste so we took a little bit of the clay. Clay's a great polisher, rich in minerals, added some salt, a little bit of essential oil. It made the world's ugliest toothpaste, but it is an incredible, healthy toothpaste.
  
  ANDREA: Well, you know what, Darryl? I know you just mentioned your Real Salt. I'd love you to come back and I'd love you to do a show on the benefits of a good quality mineral salt because I think a lot of people avoid salt when we need salt. Our adrenals need salt. So, I think it'd be great to have you back on to talk about that.
  
  For those of you who are listening, you can go visit their website. Darryl's website is RedmondTrading.com. You can also follow them on Twitter at Redmond Clay.
  
  Thanks for being on the show today, Darryl.
  
  DARRYL: Thanks for having me.
  
  ANDREA: I'm Andrea Donsky along with Lisa Davis. This is Naturally Savvy Radio on RadioMD. Follow us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter on YourRadioMD @ NaturallySavvy.
  
  Thanks for listening everyone. Be sure to take your bentonite clay.
  
  Stay well.
• Length (mins): 10
• Waiver Received: Yes
• Host: Andrea Donsky, RHN and Lisa Davis, MPH