Anyone try Diatomaceous Earth?

[glowgirl]

Back during the spider invasion of July, the lovely and helpful Topaz-stone79 turned me on to it. Since then I have been using it to kill fleas on my dogs, which is awesome because it's totally pesticide free. Of course I used it to kill all of the spiders and the carpenter ants.

So I kept researching it to see what other uses it has and it turns out a lot! I brushed my teeth with it and WOW! You can drink it in water for weight loss, joint pain, lowering cholesterol, stomach issues and hundreds of more things. I just started doing the daily drinking so I will report the results. Supposedly it makes your hair and nails grow too. Here is the link to it.

Diatomaceous Earth Human Uses - Perma-Guard Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth - EarthyHealth.com

So has anyone else used this? What for and how did it work?

 

[Happy Domino38]

You're a pioneer Glow! Let me know how it works on the creepy little buggers, I'm getting REALLY tired of buying Raid's Spider Blaster!

 

[glowgirl]

I put it down a week ago and I have lots of tiny spider corpses around so it seems to be working. Plus I can't find a flea on the pets! I am pretty happy about that as the expensive drops I was using didn't seem to do anything.

We had fun putting the spider bodies under the diopter and identifying them. They were Hobo's alright. Science is cool.

**make sure you get food grade diatomaceous earth if you use it. I got mine from the local feed store**

You're a pioneer Glow! Let me know how it works on the creepy little buggers, I'm getting REALLY tired of buying Raid's Spider Blaster!

 

[thelook]

I am going to have to check this stuff out, I have a little and I do mean tiny Yorkie who is a spider hunter, she does not kill them, she brings them to me alive! YIKES
I am scared to use raid or anythng else with her around so this sounds like just what I am looking for, Thank you!!

 

[glowgirl]

Look, you can also put a bit in your pups food to kill parasites and worms. It makes a great face mask too. I am really curious to see if it makes my hair and nails stronger....we shall see.

Oddly enough I just called my friend who has tried endless treatment for her psoriasis to tell her about it, because it is supposed to cure that to. She didn't seem too enthused. I guess not everyone wants to experiment with drinking dirt.....

 

[sleepy jean]

Just followed your link glowgirl and this stuff sounds amazing, did you buy the same brand at the feed store ?, I want to get some but would rather buy it local if I can.

 

[thelook]

I guess not everyone wants to experiment with drinking dirt.....

I have drank worse things and lived

 

[glowgirl]

I just bought what they had, standard food grade earth. I had to call around to find a place that carried it. It doesn't taste bad either, kind of like chalky water.

Just followed your link glowgirl and this stuff sounds amazing, did you buy the same brand at the feed store ?, I want to get some but would rather buy it local if I can.

 

[jopo]

I use it when the fireants show up in the horses pasture. Never tried it for spiders, have to do that! HATE spiders and even worse than them.....house centipedes!!!gave myself goosebumbs just typing that!!lol

 

[cardea]

heres a link about it, I have 3 chickens in the backyard and thats where I first heard about it great stuff.... works wonders around here!
Diatomaceous Earth - Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth Health Benefits

 

[Kimerpuff]

I have a friend who had gotten a rather nasty flea infestation going, she sprinkled it every where.. and poof! Fixed

 

[glowgirl]

Well I have been drinking it every morning for three weeks and I haven't noticed anything yet. However my animals are all flea free and my teeth look like I had them bleached (because I have been brushing with it too). I am scheduled for a teeth cleaning this week and I am curious to see what the dentist says about it.

 

[scheherezade]

Be careful with this and don't use it on your pets. It works because of the sharp edges on the particles cut into the fleas. It's also dangerous to inhale. I looked into it myself to avoid pescticides. I love boric acid sugar solutions in the garden for ants, beer for slugs etc. This is one I stayed away from.

 

[glowgirl]

From my understanding it won't harm pets. They use it on farm animals in large quantities. Although it is never a good idea to breath dust into your lungs. They even put it in pet food to kill intestinal parasites. I haven't noticed any ill effects on my pets. What have you heard that made you decide against it?

On a related note, my husband and I have been brushing with it. We went to the dentist 4 weeks ago and my husband was told he had 5 and 6 mm pockets on his back teeth and would need scaling to try to reattach the gum tissue. We started brushing with the earth three weeks ago. Today was his cleaning and scaling appointment and the doctor said his improvement was remarkable and no need to scale! They cleaned and polished and let him go.

 

[scheherezade]

Glad everything has been ok with you. Iincluded some links for you. Because of the sharp edges, it can cause problems when inhaled and I definitely would not feed my pets anything that included it. I'm not sure about the farm animals part, I haven't actually seen anyone use it on them, but that doesn't mean they didn't. Theres a couple of gov't links here. Two which include the recommended respirator filter size to wear when using it because its a lung irritant. Don't want to sound the alarm, frankly I was really excited about this stuff when I first heard about it (we had a flea infestation at the time). I told my mom about it who grew up on a dairy farm and she actually warned me about it. Did a little research from there.

DIATOMACEOUS EARTH || Skin Deep: Cosmetic Safety Reviews

Safety of Diatomaceous Earth | eHow.com

CDC - NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards - Silica, amorphous

Diatomaceous Earth Filter Aids - Alar Engineering Corporation

 

[Saintscruiser]

We've used it for years on fire ant beds and such. We forgot about fleas.....duh! It's worked on everything we've used it on. Good stuff.

 

[glowgirl]

Thank you for the links! I cut and pasted the major concerns for everyone to see. BE CAREFUL NOT TO INHALE THIS STUFF!

Problems
# A fine, abrasive powder, diatomaceous earth can be inhaled and it can irritate the lungs and mucous membranes. Crystalline silicates have been identified as a possible carcinogen and are known to cause silicosis, a lung disease characterized by scarring of the lung tissue.
Lungs
# Respirators or dust masks should be worn whenever working with diatomaceous earth to prevent these small particles from entering the lungs. Someone exposed to breathing the powder should be taken to fresh air immediately.
Skin and Eyes
# Some people experience eye and skin irritation immediately on contact with diatomaceous earth. Flushing with water for several minutes helps. Safety goggles and protective gloves can be worn as preventatives.


Read more: Safety of Diatomaceous Earth | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/facts_5920857_safety-diatomaceous-earth.html#ixzz10O8bl1Ye

 

[Phayah]

I recently bought some of this stuff because in our new house we've had cricket/spider invasions. I put it mostly just on the stairs, cracks/crevices, and downstairs. I'm not sure if it's helping yet or not.

I would like to mention one thing. I found a large spider (possibly wolf or similar) in my master bath on Friday. I have severe bugaphobia so I decided to coat him with ridiculously large amounts DE and put a cup over him until he died. Well, it's now Tuesday and he is still alive. According to what I've read, he should have become dehydrated and dead a bit more quickly than that.

Needless to say, I'm having doubts about this stuff helping me with my spider/cricket problems.

 

[CES]

Hi Phayah

You're a LOT braver than i am to leave him there for four(!) days.... I'd have helped the DE out a little bit by now.

 

[Uma]

One will often find a white ring of Borax powder circling my home. It does indeed keep the blood-suckers away. I haven't tried the DE yet.

Spray that spider with Windex, coat him with DE, cover with cup, and rent a motel room for the night. :::shudders:::