Q: I noticed on the Nanocluster labels that silica is the first ingredient listed. Is there any difference between ordinary silica and the silica found in Nanocluster Colloids?

A: The silica found in Nanocluster silica is unique because it is smaller than other silica, is spherical in form, and has a greater surface energy in the form of electrical charge.

Other forms of silica colloids are very large, have jagged edges like broken glass, and do not have a high electrical charge. As a result, other forms of silica have very little effect on the structure of water. Generally, ordinary silica is devoid of zeta potential and is too large in size to be utilized in the living system.

However, the combination of high zeta potential (electrical charge) and high surface energies enables Nanocluster colloids to form complex bonding matrices that are not possible with other forms of silica. These bonding energies enable our silica clusters to form chylomicron-like particles out of nutrients. Chylomicrons are tiny nutrient packages that are protected from oxidation and environmental destruction. They are, in a sense, predigested and may be directly absorbed in the lymphatic system. Nanocluster colloids are tens of thousands of times more active than other forms of silica, with a much greater dispersal capacity in suspension.

High surface energy comes from the fact that over 90% of the atoms in Nanocluster colloids are on the surface of the particle. Only the atoms on the surface can interact with their outside environment. in ordinary colloidal silica, 99% of the atoms are on the inside of the particles and are physically shielded from interacting with their environment. This is why other forms of silica cannot form chylomicron-type matrices. Atomic interactions are such that, when surface area and therefore the number of atoms exposed on a surface increase, the catalytic power of matter increases geometrically.

Another distinction of the silica in RBC Nanoclusters is that it is amorphous silica, spherical in form, and smooth on the surface, Most forms of silica colloids are shaped like broken glass and have jagged edges that may irritate tissues. Electron microscope studies of Nanocluster colloids made at the University of Minnesota show that our Nanocluster colloids are spherical and have no sharp edges. The geometry of our Nanocluster silica is very much like the geometry of Buckminster Fuller's geodesic domes.

Q: Do our bodies need silica?

A: Silica is essential to the human body and is found throughout the cells and organs. The amount of silica in the adult human body has been found to be as high as 0.48% on a dry-weight basis. Silica is found in blood, brain, kidneys, liver, lymph nodes, lungs, muscle, and testes. Silica is freely dispersible throughout tissue fluid. The highest levels are found in the connective tissues such as in the aorta, trachea, tendon, bone, skin, hair, and nails. Silica, therefore, gives strength and support to all th e tissues of the body.

Silica is especially important in children, playing a role in the formation of bones. It tends to accelerate bone development and has a positive effect on the phosphorus to calcium ratio.

Hepleston and Styles have provided evidence that macrophage-silica interaction results in the release of a factor of unknown nature that stimulates collagen formation. Collagen, the binder that makes our skin youthful and elastic, contains an enormous a mount of silica. Collagen cannot be formed without a sufficient supply of silica and vitamin C.