Here’s The Dirt On Activated Charcoal Pills
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Activated charcoal is easily one of the trendiest ingredients on the natural health scene right now. We’re putting it on our faces, we’re brushing our teeth with it and now we’re even popping it in pill form. The struggle with activated charcoal is that, similar to other natural remedies, the bulk of evidence supporting its use (or even swearing it off entirely) is anecdotal. And while it’s easy to notice aesthetic gains like whiter teeth and clearer pores, the effects of taking activated charcoal pills are, well, hidden well beneath the skin’s surface.
Where did the pill idea come from?
While activated charcoal use began with the ancient Egyptians, we can draw a more likely (and modern) connection to the ways in which medical professionals treat drug overdoses and poisonings in an emergency room setting. In many cases, they dose patients with activated charcoal to prevent the ingested poison from being absorbed in the body. The charcoal absorbs whatever is present in the stomach and in portions of the small intestines so it can be eliminated later. It can be more effective than stomach pumping depending on the situation, and sometimes both are used on one patient together.
What exactly makes charcoal activated?
The kind of charcoal used in this context typically comes from coconut shells, but can also be made from wood or peat. When you apply heat and oxygen gas to the charcoal, its surface expands and creates little pore-like structures that are then able to bind to other substances surrounding it (typically hydrophobic toxins and odors from gases or liquids). It’s worth noting here that it doesn’t just bind to toxins; in fact, it binds particularly well to vitamins, nutrients and medications, too. So it’s important to think about potential interactions with your existing daily regimen and keep a 2 to 3-hour window between when you take an activated charcoal pill and eat your next meal.
What are the benefits?
Activated charcoal pills are suggested to treat stomach pains from excess gas, diarrhea and other stomach issues. Many users also can’t stop talking about the detoxing benefits of activated charcoal pills. This is why you might even see it as an ingredient in some of your favorite pressed green juice drinks now. But as we mentioned earlier, activated charcoal will bind to the good stuff as much as the bad stuff, so even if you’re getting rid of icky things, you could be losing solid nutrition opportunities as well.
Also, don’t forget our bodies have the uncanny ability to detox themselves. Thanks, liver.
How risky is it?
Pretty minimal. You could take an activated charcoal supplement daily and likely have zero problems with it.
Is it really a great hangover cure?
Some say yes, others call BS. There is plenty of anecdotal evidence from users saying the pills help their bodies detox from alcohol poisons much faster than when they don’t use them. They report a decrease in stomach bloating and overall feeling of increased well-being. However, experts say activated charcoal doesn’t bind well to alcohol or ethanol molecules due to their chemical structures, meaning they can’t “pull it out of our systems” like we hoped it would.
Activated charcoal has an incredibly basic pH in the 9 to 11 range, so that can help provide much-needed relief when stomach acid production is in overdrive. So many hangovers are mainly caused by digestive struggles. But then again, some users report that taking activated charcoal pills caused gastrointestinal distress, constipation or diarrhea, which is clearly the opposite of aiding an upset tummy.
Should I give them a try?
To each his (or her) own! Some say they are the life-changing natural supplement they wished they had years ago, and others think it’s a total waste of money. But hey, considering the super low risk involved, we say they’re worth a try. Depending on your medical history, they could at least get rid of belly bloat in time for bikini weather.
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