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Charcoal increased my energy immediately - what does this mean?

Messages
21
I've been pretty much unable to do anything for the last 6 weeks - bad crash - last night after doing some reading online about mould (I got very sick while living in a water damaged house) I came across this idea of binders. I hate some activated charcoal on the shelf, which I'd never tried. I took 1tsp and felt A LOT better instantly after it.

Today I was able to get up and cook for myself and even walk down the lane. Talking didn't feel so exhausting. It was a marked change and shocked me. So, I am left wondering if other people have had such a response to charcoal, and also what it might mean. I am hoping it might be some kind of pointer as to what is going on and how to proceed. I wondered if anyone might know anything about this.

I am in Victoria, Australia and haven't found anyone medical to work with on this yet. Everyone I've seen so far just says they don't know how to help me. Thank you!
 
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Wishful

Senior Member
Messages
5,679
Location
Alberta
I'm really suspicious of anything that seems to work instantly. If charcoal was binding toxins in your intestinal tract, it would take how many minutes for the charcoal to reach it, and how many minutes to actually bind a significant amount of toxins? Did you strongly believe that it would provide immediate relief? The placebo effect is powerful and can provide instant results. Genuine improvement the next morning is more plausible: there are possible mechanisms for charcoal to help by binding toxins, altering microbiome, etc.

Whenever I encounter something that seems to have a significant effect, I do more experimenting. It has to repeat at least three times for me to consider it a real effect. So, experiment with charcoal. Try different amounts, different times of day, etc, and keep accurate notes, because our memories are really inaccurate.
 

ljimbo423

Senior Member
Messages
4,705
Location
United States, New Hampshire
I came across this idea of binders. I hate some activated charcoal on the shelf, which I'd never tried. I took 1tsp and felt A LOT better instantly after it.

Hi TurtleLove - I take 2.5 grams charcoal every day, though not for mold. I take it to absorb a toxin called lipopolysaccharide in the gut, from bacteria.

It's helps me a lot. I also noticed a very fast improvement in how I felt when I first took it too.

Jim
 

pattismith

Senior Member
Messages
3,930
Hi TurtleLove - I take 2.5 grams charcoal every day, though not for mold. I take it to absorb a toxin called lipopolysaccharide in the gut, from bacteria.

It's helps me a lot. I also noticed a very fast improvement in how I felt when I first took it too.

Jim

I did a trial with a large amount of activated charcoal and saw a quick improvement too.
I agree it might be linked to adsorption of gut LPS toxins;

Kaopectate also has potent capacity to LPS adsorption.

I have not kept this treatment because a large amount of charcoal can interfer with many other molecular adsorption, and can dry the gut, so I was afraid to keep it on the long run.
 

ljimbo423

Senior Member
Messages
4,705
Location
United States, New Hampshire
I did a trial with a large amount of activated charcoal and saw a quick improvement too.
I agree it might be linked to adsorption of gut LPS toxins;

Kaopectate also has potent capacity to LPS adsorption.

I have not kept this treatment because a large amount of charcoal can interfer with many other molecular adsorption, and can dry the gut, so I was afraid to keep it on the long run.

This was my fear too. Although it's been a few months now and I continue to slowly improve. I do always take it away from meals and supplements too.

It's something I stay aware of though. If I feel any deterioration in how I feel, that will be one of the first things I look at.:)

Jim
 
Messages
21
Hi TurtleLove - I take 2.5 grams charcoal every day, though not for mold. I take it to absorb a toxin called lipopolysaccharide in the gut, from bacteria.

It's helps me a lot. I also noticed a very fast improvement in how I felt when I first took it too.

Jim
Ah, that is interesting to know that you saw a fast improvement when you took it! Yes, I also am not sure how long I should take it for, but will see how it goes. I will read about lipopolysaccharide, thanks. Seems it can cause constipation, which no doubt doesn't help gut issues at all...
 
Messages
21
Could be from absorbing hydrogen sulfide from SIBO.
Hi, thanks for replying. I have been so unsure as to whether to investigate SIBO. It has been mentioned it to me and I've read a bit about it... so much competing info. My mainstream GP says it's not a thing... but I know people have gotten qutie a bit better through being treated for it. I'll look into it some more. Thanks.
 
Messages
21
I did a trial with a large amount of activated charcoal and saw a quick improvement too.
I agree it might be linked to adsorption of gut LPS toxins;

Kaopectate also has potent capacity to LPS adsorption.

I have not kept this treatment because a large amount of charcoal can interfer with many other molecular adsorption, and can dry the gut, so I was afraid to keep it on the long run.[/QUOTE

Did your improvement maintain itself after you stopped taking the charcoal?
 
Messages
21
I'm really suspicious of anything that seems to work instantly. If charcoal was binding toxins in your intestinal tract, it would take how many minutes for the charcoal to reach it, and how many minutes to actually bind a significant amount of toxins? Did you strongly believe that it would provide immediate relief? The placebo effect is powerful and can provide instant results. Genuine improvement the next morning is more plausible: there are possible mechanisms for charcoal to help by binding toxins, altering microbiome, etc.

Whenever I encounter something that seems to have a significant effect, I do more experimenting. It has to repeat at least three times for me to consider it a real effect. So, experiment with charcoal. Try different amounts, different times of day, etc, and keep accurate notes, because our memories are really inaccurate.
Hi, thank you for replying. Yes, I also wondered about placebo effect, but actually I didn't expect it to work. I was so surprised. I think the improvement was within half and hour or so, so not completely immediate, but it was significant. I thought it was odd too, which is what made me wonder why/how that had happened!
 

hangininthere

Senior Member
Messages
101
Location
USA
Charcoal capsules perk me up from a miserable malaise by the next day.

I believe it can work immediately, within the hour, because look how they use it in emergency rooms for ingested drug overdoses. It works immediately to save a life. Charcoal soaks up toxins fast.

When we are laid up in bed, I think everyday toxins build up in us because our lymphatic system gets sluggish and can't clear out toxins on schedule.

The more I lie here, the worse I feel. Yet I'm trapped lying here because of my severe CFS. A vicious circle.

Other things work within the hour for me even though they're supposed to take weeks to kick in, such as St. John's Wort.

A lot of things work right away. Most do. Such as, allergy pills are advertised as working in an hour. Aspirin works fast, etc.

Patti
 
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Messages
21
Thanks, Patti. Yes, vicious circle, that is for sure. And yes, as you say, charcoal is known to work immediately. I guess I'm just wondering what the toxins are that it seems to be soaking up. I was also just reading that some bacteria produce toxins.
 

Wishful

Senior Member
Messages
5,679
Location
Alberta
Half an hour is definitely not 'instant'. Half an hour sounds long enough for toxin-binding to have an effect. If I had that response (I tried it before; no effect on me) I'd research toxins and binders and see if there were any other more specific binders that I could experiment with. Maybe something binds with inorganic toxins (metals) or only with amines or whatever. You could narrow down what in your body is causing problems.
 

Gingergrrl

Senior Member
Messages
16,171
@Gingergrrl has a lot of unfortunate experience with mold. She might have some experience with binders.

For some reason, I did not get an alert that I was tagged but I happened to open this thread when I saw charcoal and assumed that it related to mold binders! Sadly, I do have lots of experience with getting ill from toxic black mold.

When I saw a mold specialist (doctor) in July 2015, my MCAS was still so severe at that time that I was unable to tolerate any of the binders that she recommended, including activated charcoal, even at a toothpick dose. I ended up using nebulized glutathione and a very mild mold binder of apple pectin with oats (b/c it was all that I could tolerate).

I had some mild improvement, but we also moved away from the moldy environment and got rid of all of our belongings which also played a role. And I was also taking a very strict medication protocol from my MCAS specialist (who I also started seeing in July 2015) to try to reduce my allergic reactions. So it is hard to separate all of the different things that I tried at that time.