Solgar Oceanic Silica from Red Algae 25 mg, 100 Vegetable Capsules – Excellent Source of Calcium, Supports Bone Health – Non-GMO, Vegan, Gluten…

After talking to a friend about my knee pain, she told me a story about how she’d suffered with knee pain for several years during her early 20’s oftentimes having to rely on crutches to get around. The only option her doctors had for her problem was a recommendation to have surgery. She didn’t want to go that route as it’s clearly a one way street.
A chance meeting with a naturopath physician came with a solution in the form of silica. He recommended a source and she started taking it. Within a week, her pain was gone and she was back to playing volleyball. I had a hard time believing her story and couldn’t see the connection between silica and such a quick turnaround. He told her many people have a deficit of silica in their bodies and don’t get enough from their food.
After doing more research, I went back to my friend and asked her what kind of silica she used as some products are made from horsetail and others rely on diatomaceous earth. She recommended this product as it’s made from a vegetal source and has the highest dose of silica in comparison to horsetail-based products. She also gave me her bottle. I went home and took two capsules that evening. My knee stopped hurting within the first 20 hours. I was shocked and decided to give two to my husband who was also suffering with knee pain. He also got almost immediate relief. The pain did come back after 20 hours and I took two more. I can’t dismiss the possibility of a placebo effect although I was very skeptical that it would do anything at all. The simple pain relief gives me the ability to gently exercise my knees in an effort to rebuild their strength and flexibility as I work towards healing.
There isn’t a lot of substantial research that I could find documenting the effects of taking a silica supplement that I could find on the internet. I did learn that some people have problems with horsetail-based products. The Solgar Silica helped us to get back on our feet without surgery. It’s definitely something to consider based on our anecdotal results. Hope this helps…

I didn’t notice much difference to my nails or hair. I wouldn’t buy again.

Ingredients: Microcrystalline Cellulose, Vegetable Cellulose, Silica, Vegetable Magnesium Stearate.

Each vegan, cellulose capsule of this nutritional supplement contains 25 mg of elemental silica and 100 mg of calcium carbonate, which amounts to 40 mg of elemental calcium. To derive full benefit from the calcium, this supplement should be taken with food, because calcium carbonate requires stomach acid to dissolve and digest.

There are many different brands of silica in the marketplace. The advantages of this particular brand are as follows:

—Derived from oceanic red algae rather than horsetail, which is the silica source for all of the other brands I have used in the past. It is not advised to take horsetail long term because it contains thiaminase, which breaks down the vitamin thiamine (B1). A B1 deficiency has a negative impact on the heart, brain and nervous system.
—Solgar has been around a long time, and it has a good reputation. It is located in New Jersey, and the company states that their product ingredients are sourced from the US and that their supplements are manufactured here.
—Vegan friendly, using cellulose capsules rather than gelatin.

I personally take silica as one of multiple supplements (calcium, magnesium, MK-7, D3, strontium, and boron) which synergistically promote bone health, but silica has many other benefits as well as that, including the following:

—It promotes healthy hair, nails and skin.
—It promotes healthy teeth.
—It promotes healthy tendons and ligaments.
—It enhances the immune system.
—It supports pancreatic function.
—It helps prevent cardiovascular disease by strengthening blood vessels and lowering high blood pressure.
—It protects lung tissue.
—It helps decrease swelling (edema) in the body.
—It helps prevent kidney stones, heal infections in the urinary tract, and it is a natural diuretic.
—It helps prevent or heal intestinal inflammation and prevent both diarrhea and constipation.
—It helps heal hemorrhoids.
—It helps heal infections of all types.
—It helps with osteoarthritis and rheumatism.
—It helps to strengthen nerve cells and connective tissue in the brain and spinal cord, which helps to prevent memory loss due to age and Alzheimer’s.

RELEVANT RESEARCH

de Araújo, L. et al. Use of silicon for skin and hair care: an approach of chemical forms available and efficacy. An Bras Dermatol. 2016 May-Jun;91(3):331–335.

Gillette-Guyonnet, S., et al. The potential influence of silica present in drinking water on Alzheimer’s disease and associated disorders. J Nutr Health Aging. 2007;11(2):119-124.

Jurkić, L., et al. Biological and therapeutic effects of ortho-silicic acid and some ortho-silicic acid-releasing compounds: New perspectives for therapy. Nutr Metab (Lond). 2013;10(1):2.

Marcowycz, A., et al. Digestive absorption of silicon, supplemented as orthosilicic acid-vanillin complex. Mol Nutr Food Res. 2015 Aug; 59(8):1584-1589.

Martin, K. Silicon: The Health Benefits of a Metalloid. In: Sigel A., Sigel H., Sigel R. (eds) Interrelations between Essential Metal Ions and Human Diseases. Metal Ions in Life Sciences, vol 13. Springer, Dordrecht. 2013.

Martin, K. The chemistry of silica and its potential health benefits. J Nutr Health Aging. 2007;11(2):94-97.

EXPLANATION OF INGREDIENTS

Flow Agent AKA Anti-Caking Agent: Two typical flow agents are magnesium stearate and microcrystalline cellulose, which are both contained in this supplement. Flow agents are used in pharmaceutical drugs and nutritional supplements to ensure a consistently homogenous mix and also to prevent powdered therapeutic ingredients from clinging to encapsulating equipment in a manufacturing facility. Both of these things help to ensure quality control, such that the amount of the advertised active ingredients of the drug or nutraceutical is the same from capsule to capsule. Flow agents are also used in many different packaged foods as a texturizer, a fat substitute, an emulsifier, an extender, and a bulking agent. According to the Select Committee on GRAS Substances, microcrystalline cellulose is generally regarded as safe.

Magnesium Stearate: It is a simple salt made of two common, safe substances, the mineral magnesium and the saturated fat, stearic acid. It is used as a flow agent, AKA anti-caking agent, in many packaged foods, pharmaceutical drugs, and nutritional supplements. Both magnesium and stearic acid naturally occur in many different foods. They are not merely safe to consume and easily digested, but both are actually beneficial to human health.

Microcrystalline Cellulose (MCC). This is a form of indigestible fiber which is derived from refined wood pulp whose primary purpose is as a flow agent AKA anti-caking agent. It is utilized in that manner in pharmaceutical drugs, nutritional supplements and packaged food.

Vegetable Cellulose AKA Modified Cellulose. This is a common additive in the processed food industry, and it is also used as a flow agent in pharmaceutical drugs and nutritional supplements. It is commercially produced most commonly in the USA from wood pulp and cotton, but it can also be produced from corn cobs, corn stalks, sugar cane stalks, rice hulls, soybean hulls, oat hulls, wheat straw, sugar beet pulp, bamboo, flax, jute, and ramie (a flowering plant in the nettle family native to eastern Asia). It is chemically processed with either acids or alkali. In contrast, dietary cellulose is an insoluble fiber naturally present in whole, unadulterated foods, including: fruits, vegetables, grains, seeds, nuts and legumes. My presumption is that the capsules that this supplement is contained in are made of a specific type of vegetable cellulose called hydroxypropylmethylcellulose AKA HPMC AKA hypromellose. There are usually only two ingredients in vegetable capsules, HPMC and purified water.

Holy crap this stuff is amazing. My husband and I began taking these daily and within the week we could see the hairs on our arms growing in thicker….so we did before and after photos, 2 months go by and our hair has gotten to lush its insane! Nails so hard they’re hard to clip….so not a bad thing.

If you suffer from brittle hair, hair loss, skin issues, bone pain, or brittle nails, get this!! And stick with it.

I also noticed within the month the pain I’d have in my knees or elbows after a days work wasnt there anymore…I’m 30 and I felt 20 years old after taking this for a month.

Unreal stuff.

I have been taking this now for a month at least. I have found that my hair has grown, my nails are tough and my skin is soft. Everything it says it does it has worked for me