Top benefits, tips & uses for Loving Islands’ Organic Activated Charcoal!
Increasingly known as a magnet to absorb and rid your body of toxins, activated charcoal has been a growing trend since 2014. So, with Loving Islands Organic Activated Charcoal now selling online & at our shop in Suva we’ve done some homework to answer your questions and bring you our Top 5 benefits and uses to help you get the most of this beautiful product!
How does activated charcoal work?
Activated charcoal has been used by the medical industry as an effective treatment for food poisoning since the early 1800’s. It has an incredibly high surface area that makes it very effective at absorbing and binding chemicals and toxins. So, when you use activated charcoal it binds chemicals and removes them as it is expelled from the digestive system or washed off your face or teeth.
Read more about this on the Wellness Mama website.
What is the difference between activated charcoal and charcoal?
A popular question with many answers. But we’ve summarised it down to two differences. Being 1) purity of carbon & 2) the size of the surface area.
Activated charcoal, or activated carbon as it is also called, is a pure form of carbon with a high surface area and small pores.
Charcoal is also carbon but not a 100% pure form of carbon (eg. it can also contain ash). It also does not have the high surface area and small pore size that activated charcoal does, making it less ‘active’.
Why buy Loving Islands Organic Activated Charcoal?
Activated charcoal can be produced by many methods usually categorised as natural (‘physical’) or chemical processes.
The natural production process used by Loving Islands Organic Activated Charcoal includes burning the source material (eg. Organic coconut shells) at high temperatures (600°C-900°C/1112°F-1652°F) in a closed environment without oxygen (this is called pyrolysis). After some time oxygen is introduced to the process which ‘activates’ the surface area of the charcoal. The activated charcoal is then purified & pounded.
The chemical production process is not one we have done personally. However, according to wikipedia it begins with injecting the source materials (eg. wood or coconut shells) with chemicals that force the materials to open up or ‘activate’ at lower burning temperatures (250°C-600°C/1112°F 1652°F).
Some precautions
Oscar Wilde’s words – ‘Everything in moderation, including moderation’ – is generally advice we live by. So, applying (the first part) of his quote seems like a good idea. And here’s a list of precautions as to why:
- Do not take with mineral or vitamin supplements as the activated charcoal may absorb the wanted chemicals and lower your intake.
- Hydrate with water when taking or using activated charcoal as it has a tendency to dehydrate.
- Taking activated charcoal regularly may cause constipation and block mineral absorption.
Tip: As always with reading information online, please take this information generally and always seek expert and personalised advice from your doctor or dentist!
Now for our list of benefits & uses!
1. Loving Islands’ Organic Activated Charcoal DIY facial to purify your skin of unwanted toxins & reduce signs of ageing.
Help remove dead skin and absorb toxins to leave your skin feeling baby smooth! As a magnet to absorb and rid your body of toxins, Loving Islands Organic Activated Charcoal has been said to help clear skin blemishes like acne and reduce reduce signs of aging. Though no formal study has proven the benefits yet, many users claim that the quality of their skin has greatly improved since adding organic activated charcoal soaps and cleansers to their routine. A growing trend since 2014 activated charcoal has become the ideal way to purify skin naturally and effectively.
Try it with our do-it-yourself organic activated charcoal face mask recipe below!
- Combine ingredients into a paste and apply to face excluding lip and eye area.
- Leave for 10 minutes and remove with warm water.
- Apply Loving Islands #1 Natural Island Body Balm to moisturise.
2. Brighten & whiten teeth
Possibly the most popular commercial use for activated charcoal to emerge in the 2010’s is the explosion of activated charcoal toothpastes to hit the market.
Whilst there is still no scientific evidence behind activated charcoal as a scientifically proven tooth whitener there is a growing volume of online testimonies from health and beauty guru’s claiming the benefit as well as dentist endorsements that activated charcoal is effective in removing surface stains from teeth.
Recommendations on including Loving Islands Organic Activated Charcoal to your dental routine
- Use a seperate toothbrush for brushing with activated charcoal and your normal toothpaste.
- Brush teeth with activated Charcoal once a week before brushing with toothpaste.
- Have a wet cloth ready to clean the wash sink basin after brushing with activated charcoal.
Steps to brush with Loving Island’s Organic Activated Charcoal
- Wet clean toothbrush under tap, shake off excess water and dip into Loving Islands’ Organic Activated Charcoal powder.
- Brush gently onto teeth and leave for 2minutes to allow time for the absorption to process.
- Rinse out several times before brushing with your regular toothpaste.
3. Treat painful bug bites and blemishes
Use to help relieve the stinging pain of insect bites, mixing activated charcoal with organic virgin coconut oil and applying it to the bite can help to soothe irritation and reduce the risk of infection.
Tip: keep the area covered with a breathable bandage, since activated charcoal can stain surfaces.
4. Naturally treat mild food poisoning and gastric
As already mentioned, activated charcoal is a well known treatment for food poisoning or gastric. This being said – always be sure to seek medical advice as needed.
Loving Islands Organic Activated Charcoal Recipe for food poisoning treatment
1/2 cup filtered water
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon Loving Islands Organic Activated Charcoal
1/2 tablespoon organic raw honey
Steps
- Mix Loving Islands Organic Activated Charcoal with organic raw honey.
- Combine filtered water and vinegar in a cup and stir in activated charcoal mixture.
- Drink quickly and repeat every 30 minutes until symptoms disappear.
Read a food poisoning case study over at Wellness Mamma