Diatomaceous earth how much to use

You can send me an email at stein sweetdreammaplefarm. Thank you for asking, looking forward to hearing from you! Amy Stein. There is DE bagged specifically for human consumption. I started using DE about a year ago for my chickens mostly, but I mix it with the feed for the piggies and goats. I had one pig that most definitely had worms, and In short order she was OK. When I bought my DE, I was told that food grade was white in color, and industrial grade was mostly brown.

I put it in the bedding for my chickens and the bedding in my goats pen for fleas, mites, lice, and other insects. I am learning this week about putting it into the feed for my chickens and my goats. Depending on where I lived, as the shipping is the thing that is expensive…. We used to be heavily involved in Animal Rescue and many of the rescue animals came into the rescue with worms and parasites. But they were too sick to do a de-worming protocol from the vet, so we gave them DE with their food.

It also makes their coats shiny and soft. I did a ton of research. I decided to wait until I could find more conclusive evidence for this one question that lingers in my mind. Knowing that, and knowing the delicate membranes in some of our digestive areas, I still have a concern that those same sharp edges could, over time, act as sandpaper on our intestinal and stomach tissues.

So, at this time, I think the only way I would use this is for a short time burst — then I would let it rest. If that makes sense. This is a very interesting point, and I would also like to know if anyone has come across research that says anything about this. Just a thought. It could also be the amount taken that does not cause any problems within the stomach and intestine?

I think that is my concern — I am just uncertain. Sometimes I take a less is more approach until I have my facts secured. I wondered this also. If it cuts up exoskeletons I wonder what keeps it from cutting up soft tissue? Maybe it softens up with moisture, hence the reason we have to keep applying it if it gets wet? Yes, I do understand that concern. What gave me reassurance in that area is that it is recommended by Dr. She talks more about DE on the bottom of page 9 and onto page There are a lot of questions and answers to read…very interesting!

I have a question? I have a friend who can not eat my eggs if I have fed the alfalfa or she gets sick since she is allergic to alfalfa! Just curious of thoughts. Unless you plan on eating the shell. I would not say that eggs from chickens could be a source of DE, since DE is technically diatoms. I would say that the egg itself and the eater???? Hope that makes sense.

Not sure what happened. We own a feed mill and incorporate DE as we bring in grains, so, ultimately it is in our grist and ground feeds. The USEPA began their witch-hunt and spent a couple days going through our labeling and then spent hours going over our website and concluded we were selling an unlicensed insecticide. Took them one year, but they slapped us with a fine of over a quarter million dollars. Careful what you say…. Disclaimers do NOT exempt anyone anymore.

Farmers use DE to protect their wheat from pests. It has to be dry for it to be effective against carapaced, exoskeletoned beasts. Do you think it changes when you put it in water and swallow it? And, by the way, has anybody heard of Aulterra powder for enhancing nutraceuticals and absorbing EMW radiation? I bought some and tried it for the little german roaches and they just walked around with it all over themselves.

IT is food grade though so maybe I should get the other?? I would stick with the food grade. You might could try reapplying, making sure to cover all crevices and points of entry and reapplying after rain. I hope that helps. I used it for squash bugs in the garden as well as for lots of other things and found in my research and experience that it works on them when they are still young and soft. I use it with my chickens a lot, in their nests, on their droppings, occasionally in their feed, etc.

The first bag I bought was a fine, white powder. Does anyone have experience with it? If in doubt throw it out! I take natural supplements. Will DE interfere with them. In other words, Is there a timing issue that would assure DE would not be removing the supplements, for instance should I wait an hour after taking supplements to take DE?

From what I have read, DE should not interfere with food, natural supplements, or probiotics. If you have doubts, then just take it between doses. God bless you, too! Most recently I was desperate at midnight when I realized my dog was suffering from hotspots, I mixed a little with water and applied it, next day they were gone.

Try it for 3 days and you will notice a natural energy bestow you and motivation to get er done! Diatomaceous earth is a fossil, from diatoms. I use it for parasites, red ants in the yard, fleas on my animals, as well as parasites. My animals are healthy, and I have no fire ants. How young of a child can be given DA?

It also lists as safe for pregnant and breastfeeding. They have had no adverse reactions. There is no hurry with DE, start with small doses and slowly work your way up.

Go read the back of your acetaminophen or ibuprofen bottle. If you are still willing to take both of those products, then what could be so scary about dirt? If adults should start out taking one teaspoon in liquid, how much should you start out children taking? My children both weigh between 90 and lbs.

I would start off in small doses, definitely, and work your way up to these. I have used DE for decades to clean historic garments that cannot go into the wash. You place a paste over stains and when it is dry brush or vacuum off. We have used DE for a few years. We have found it has made our bodies much healthier. Also I have found when I take a heaping tablespoon in some milk before bedtime I sleep very well, much deeper than I had ever before.

No flies. Could go on but I think you get the point. Is the DE used in pools the food grade stuff? My opinion is as good as yours, maybe better. And I can state my opinion with or without your approval. Take some time to do some research on DE and then get back to us with your opinion. Oh, and by the way, I never said I eat DE or feed it to my children, but it was really polite of you to jump to that conclusion.

Please grow up. These comments are for educational discussion, not 3rd grade drama. If somebody attacks you, ignore it. The DE used in swimming pool filters is Industrial Grade. If the DE is getting into the pool, the filter needs some repairs possibly new filtration grids. I have been using DE for 5 months now.

Well, my thyroid was working fine, it was my crap ass diet that was to blame! Since then, I have cleaned up my act and DE is part of it daily.

If I have to, I put the tablespoon in about 20 ounces of water and give it a good shake. Yep, its gritty- tastes like dirt. No flavor.. The smoothie is much more enjoyable. Plus I throw chia seeds and bee pollen in there. I also use it in my garden to keep the pesties at bay. This stuff is finer than frog hair. If you want to check your thyroid at home, just takeyour temperature first thing of a morning.

It should be Normal temperature during the day is It drops. If your temp is below I used to bring it back from Europe because it was so hard to find here in the US. Thank you for your comment. Sorry if you thought I was being snotty. I guess you assumed that was my intent…it was not.

My bag, which I got from Tractor Supply to treat my dogs fleas when I found out it was good for that- it worked great! Food Grade DE is a white color like in the picture. If you are thinking of using it for yourself, you must buy Food Grade. The difference here lies with the way that each type of DE is treated. Pool grade DE is calcined, meaning that is treated with very high heat. This turns the silicon dioxide that is present in the DE into crystalline silica. DE varies in color due to the fact that each deposit is composed of a unique makeup.

The reason that Red Lake Diatomaceous Earth is brownish-grey is that, in addition to diatomaceous earth, this deposit is also enhanced with naturally occurring montmorillonite also known as calcium bentonite. Thank you farmer for clearing that up as I bought the Red Lake Earth brand food grade from local feed store and it is grayish not white. I have been feeding it to my horse and reading all this sent me into a panic that even though it says food grade it is still the wrong one. Yes, that is my same problem.

Is it safe? The DE police are on patrol again! Last time I checked we live in the land of the free and the home of the brave. My whole family and i , including the dog and our hairless rat have been taking this for five months now.. I take mine first thing in the morning. Yes, we all have noticed the difference in our bodies.. I highly recommend for others to read about it and give it a try.

Interesting ideas here. But people should use caution about sprinkling it in the home. After nearly three months, I realized the DE that might be the cause and cleaned it up. Within a week my son and could breath again. And all we did was sprinkle it. My son never had asthma before that. I get asthmatic in peoples homes who keep pet cats. So no major history of breathing disorders here. Just the earth, so please be careful especially if you have pets or kids. Yes, do take care not to breathe it in.

Can I use them together? Or are the basically the same? DE absorbs heavy metals. Does it also absorb other minerals we need such as magnesium, selenium, calcium, zinc, etc?

How does what DE does for the body compare to what bentonite clay does? What are the relative benefits of both? Do they serve different purposes or the same or similar? I have heard it from a trustworthy source that the bentonite will absorb the good and the bad…. That is also why it is advised to take bentonite only with water. It is amazing stuff! If you take it between meals it can pass thru quickly and will not effect the digestion of the next meal.

We prefer to take bentonite at night right before we brush our teeth so we can clean it off our teeth right away.. I am still learning about the DE so I cannot say if it acts totally the same. From what I have heard in this article and others, the DE is better at the scrubbing, cleansing action. Sounds like it is just more aggressive in that manor, but they both absorb the impurities the same way. DE is priceless to have and use.

Detoxing results in movement of toxins through the lymph system which means they can pass into the milk, on to unborn baby. That would mean that you have been removing impurities for a while and continue the protocol as a maintenance tool.

A little detoxing is healthy, otherwise you are just storing it up and it is in the blood stream that effects the baby. Starting heavy use of DE while already pregnant is probably not a good idea…should start slow and with small ammounts and then you can increase the dosage if no negative symptoms of detox.

Hello everyone! I live close to a diatomaceous earth mine, or as most of us call it, a chalk mine. Another name for it is zeolite. It is used for a multitude of things from kitty litter to health supplements. If you want to google it in the expensive form, google NCD2. I am sure that this is not the only company that sells it for medicinal purposes but it is the one that I am aware of.

This one comes in liquid form. I am not in anyway advocating it, but I know people personally that do. I am struggling my way through a colon cancer diagnosis and was given several bottles of it by a friend that feels it cured her. She also gave it to a horse suffering from cancer that was sent home from the vets to be euthanized. After a few days of packing water and feed to the horse and giving it the NCD2, the horse got up and trotted away.

They are still riding the horse today, six years later! Her story, not mine, but this was my neighbor, not some random person on the internet.

Maybe if you go to this companies website, you can find some sort of believable research. I asked my oncologist and he said that the difference could be that one was safer because it was pasteurized. I checked, it was not.

Like I said, I am not pushing any of it, just giving a little insight and another resource for information. We have diatomaceous earth everywhere in my area, we just call them chalk hills. Also in Dr. Marks site he recommends a combination of affordable and apparently effective strategies to assist in fighting cancer above and beyond what Vernon did.

If your interested…. Ah, thank you! Zeolite is one of the filler ingredients in my supplements. I was looking at that just today and trying to figure out what it actually is. Zeolite is not the same as diatomaceous earth. In fact, I would not take zeolites internally as they are aluminum-containing. Because zeolite does not get broken down in the body, it does not leech any elements that make up the compound. Zeolite is not like an essential mineral that gets absorbed in the body and utilized for cellular functions.

Zeolite is not absorbed in your body. It simply passes through your blood stream collecting positively charged toxic elements and then is excreted.

I have the same questions as Laura and Karen just above. What is the difference between taking the Bentonite Clay and the DE? Thank you for your article. Since 30 million have suffered injury or died from taking properly prescribed FDA Approved Drugs. This genocide compares easily with Hitler deaths by a tax payer government approved agency. We are being experimented on by the FDA. The drugs are approved before side effects and deaths are reported. Ever read about the FDA approval process?

Interesting as greed and power always are….. That looks bad…. Just read this and thought you all may find it interesting. Earthworks Health Diatomaceous Earth Mined from the purest of deposits from prehistoric freshwater lakebeds, Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth consists of finely milled silica shells of ancient microscopic freshwater plants called diatoms.

Of deposits in the U. I just found this interesting and thought I would share because it explains what DE is. Earthworks Health also uses the Perma-Guard product. Here is another company that sells DE and their explanation of what it is. Thought this may help others. It was important to have a consistent shape diatom and no unwanted sediment. The shape of the diatom must be tubular with holes on the walls.

It must be fresh water because the diatoms form a harder shell and is less fragile that those in salt water. Salt water deposits contain a mix of diatom species.

These deposits shapes and sediments are inconsistent making them unusable for our products. Other food grade deposits still may contain higher amounts of sediment and clay that make them less effective.

Perma-Guard products use Diatomaceous Earth, mother natures eco-friendly naturally organic material. Actually, DE is not an earth. I ordered a small shaker bottle on amazon.

I am very careful that neither myself or the dog breathe in the dust. For that purpose, it was also recommended to spread hydrated lime on the yard, which I did.

I have some health issues that concern me and I was wondering if you could advise me. I have had kidney stones in the past and have reduced kidney function due to a fungal condition that was treated with medications. I also have diverticulitis. Therefore, I am concerned about bad effects on kidney function and the lining of my intestine. Does your research address these issues and can you pass along that information and your source?

Thank you so much. I am very interested in using DE. I pray things turn around for you. I have used DE for several years on my hens….. Be careful not to give them too much as it will cause very loose poops!! Its a great way to control intestinal parasites in them. As for the FDA….. I have my own brain thank you very much! Look on amazon. I just ordered the 5 pounder since it is a better value and it will last awhile. Check where farmers buy supplies and from Tractor Supply stores.

If you buy on internet you will have to pay shipping. DT is fabulous but we need additional help to completely purge parasites. DT does not handle eggs.

Check out the work Kerri Rivera has been doing with Autism mmsautism. This is a magnificent gift. Thanks for all the info! I have a couple of questions. I ordered mine from Amazon in the summer and used it for tick control and any bugs lurking in the house. Wonder if it would help to keep snakes away from my koi pond like irritating their skin and second of all, my little dog has a yeast infection in his ears and feet. Does anyone know if this would help or hurt him?

Love these comments!! If it gets wet? It gets wet in your body think about it. If comes from the bottom of the ocean lol. Wow, this is so cool. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. It has saved my family from losing large portions of our garden to beetles, moths, and other crawly things.

A popular topic of discussion by many gardeners in recent times, it is an organic gardening pesticide that has been used by some farmers and pest control professionals for decades. When ground, these tiny oceanic skeletal pieces are very sharp, and produce the effect of many miniature razor blades on the respiratory systems of any smaller insect or bug that inhales it. It also causes drying of the mucous membranes of breathing holes and lungs in bugs. Effective against slugs , beetles, worms, fleas, mites, and most any spider or insect, it is not much of a concern for larger creatures.

Because the particles are so small, DE is safe to use around other wildlife, children, and pets. Anyone who is particularly sensitive to particulates such as those with asthma or any other type of breathing condition will want to avoid directly breathing in the dust. My husband is one such person, and he wears a dust mask to avoid coughing fits and temporary irritation. My husband carries around a recycled carpet cleaning powder container that he uses to sprinkle liberal amounts of diatomaceous earth on plants in our garden that are the most susceptible to insect damage.

While we may have used Sevin or another toxic product in the past, DE works just as well for us — without the worry of our children ingesting trace amounts of toxic chemicals with each garden snack. You can sprinkle it directly on the ground where slugs are most likely to reproduce.

Or, you can apply a light dusting to the plants themselves. Diatomaceous earth must be reapplied after every rain or heavy dew to be effective. There are other types that may contain contaminates that are harmful if inhaled or ingested. Studies on food grade DE , however, have shown it to be relatively harmless to people, even if inhaled in rather large amounts. As harmless as the food grade version can be for your household, the regular stuff may cause major problems.

The type that is often used in pool filtration systems is not safe to use around kids and pets. Be sure to purchase food grade only and check the packaging for this designation. As helpful as many garden store employees can be, many are not aware of the differences. It is up to you to protect your family and flock by reading labels, and ensuring that you are introducing a safe pest treatment to your garden. For more information on the safe use of diatomaceous earth, we like this helpful resource from our friends at Pest Strategies.

I want to keep our acreage, and the neighboring land around it, free from harmful chemicals. In fact, DE is a sustainable source of silicon dioxide, an essential ingredient needed for poultry development. Chickens that eat vegetation treated by diatomaceous earth may potentially experience significant health benefits. Note: While I do not live near the oceans or any major waterways, runoff containing DE simply redeposits the silicon that originally came from the ocean back into it.

The silicon continues, undissolved, until it can be used by certain marine life species in building their exoskeletons! Their skeletons are made of a natural substance called silica. Over a long period of time, diatoms accumulated in the sediment of rivers, streams, lakes, and oceans. Today, silica deposits are mined from these areas. Various forms of silica include sand, emerald, quartz, feldspar, mica, clay, asbestos, and glass.

Silicon, a component of silica, does not exist naturally in its pure form. It usually reacts with oxygen and water to form silicon dioxide. Silicon dioxide has two naturally occurring forms: crystalline and amorphous. Most diatomaceous earth is made of amorphous silicon dioxide. However, it can contain very low levels of crystalline silicon dioxide. The first pesticide products containing silicon dioxide diatomaceous earth were registered in to kill insects and mites.

Products containing diatomaceous earth are most commonly dusts. Other formulations include wettable powders and pressurized liquids. Currently, there are over products registered for use inside and outside of buildings, farms, gardens, and pet kennels.

Some products can also be used directly on dogs and cats. Diatomaceous earth products are registered for use against bed bugs , cockroaches , crickets, fleas , ticks , spiders , and many other pests. There are thousands of non-pesticide products that contain diatomaceous earth.

These include skin care products, toothpastes, foods, beverages, medicines, rubbers, paints, and water filters. They may be used as anticaking materials in feed, or as clarifiers for wine and beer. Always follow label instructions and take steps to minimize exposure. If any exposures occur, be sure to follow the First Aid instructions on the product label carefully.

For additional treatment advice, contact the Poison Control Center at If you wish to discuss a pesticide problem , please call Diatomaceous earth is not poisonous; it does not have to be eaten in order to be effective.

Diatomaceous earth causes insects to dry out and die by absorbing the oils and fats from the cuticle of the insect's exoskeleton. By the thousands, people state that DE boosts their energy, helps them lose weight, supports digestive health, strengthens skin and hair, and promotes joint health. The fact that DE is an effective pesticide is indisputable, but this fact actually makes some people cautious about using DE. Naturally free of toxins; its bug-killing secret is in its physical structure.

Because of its coarse, porous, and absorbent nature, it sticks to bugs when they crawl through it, wicking away vital moisture from their exoskeletons. Within a few hours, they die of dehydration. DE is effective on many kinds of pests, including bed bugs, fleas, lice, ants, ticks, cockroaches, and more.

Many people have found relief from these pests without the use of toxic chemicals. The kind of DE used as a pesticide is the pest control grade. For this reason, there are many DE products on the market labeled as insecticides. Where I buy my diatomaceous earth , the pest control grade is the same thing as the food-grade, just packaged differently to meet EPA regulations.

Food grade DE can be used in many of your do-it-yourself projects. You can use it as an ingredient in homemade toothpaste, bath bombs, body butter, soap, and much more. Because of its absorptive nature, you can also use it to preserve stored grains and deodorize the carpet.

You can even use it to diffuse essential oils. First and foremost, steer clear of pool grade DE unless you need it for your pool filter. Second, be careful about breathing it in. Just like any dust, if you inhale too much, it can cause irritation. However, if you have a respiratory condition, or if you are spreading a large amount of DE, you might want to wear a breathing mask and eye protection to avoid irritation.

If you inhale large amounts and it causes prolonged discomfort, I suggest going to see your doctor. Various grades and qualities of DE can be found in health food stores, hardware stores, and online.

Make sure to do some research before deciding what brand is best for your needs. I buy mine here because they have a great product and a lot of information. To sum up, diatomaceous earth is some pretty awesome stuff!

Whether you are looking for a natural supplement to improve your health, a safe pesticide to get rid of fleas or bed bugs, or a special ingredient for DIY projects, DE has done incredible things for many people. Just make sure you get the right grade and the right quality for your needs, and you will be amazed by how DE can help you in your health and wellness journey.

I hope you learned a thing or two about how to use diatomaceous earth in this post, and give it a try yourself! Did you already know how to use diatomaceous earth? What are your favorite uses for it?