Understanding the meaning of two similar words—absorb and adsorb—is key to understanding why clay has long been used for detoxification and healing.

“Clays that have the ability to absorb and adsorb are called living or active clays because they are capable of changing and exchanging,” says Vanessa Drew, owner of Cleansing Concepts, a family of detoxification spas in Garden City and Smithtown, New York, and Red Bank, New Jersey.

Adsorption is the process by which the charged particles of other substances combine with charged particles on the outer surface of the clay molecule, she explains. 

“The positively charged ions are attracted to the stronger negatively charged surfaces of the clay molecules. So an exchange reaction occurs: The clay mineral ions are swapped for the ions of the positively charged substance. The clay molecules are electrically satisfied and bind with the substances capturing them.”

Absorption is a slower, more complex process. 

“Absorbent clays have a charge on their inner layers,” Drew says. “Charged ions sit between the layers of the clay molecule, surrounded by water molecules. The expanded clay attracts foreign substances that fill the spaces between those layers. It absorbs positively charged ions and impurities and ignores negatively charged nutrients.”

Five Basic Functions

Those chemical reactions are the natural engineering behind detox clay. According to Drew, it’s used for five basic functions: to cleanse, particularly internally; to balance, as it’s homeostatic; to alkalize (it has a 9.7 pH); to stimulate blood flow, oxygen, and circulation, for cellular repair; and to energize, as it has electromagnetic properties.

“Detox clay is used by some of the most exclusive spas and resorts in the world,” she says. “There is no finer, more effective clay for facial treatments and full-body uses, such as wraps and detoxification, that you can do all by yourself at home for a fraction of the price.”

Cleansing Concept has its own line of detox clay products, from topicals—soap, deodorant, mud, powder, and toothpaste—to a drink. According to Drew, the line uses 100 percent pure, 350-mesh-screened calcium bentonite clay, from the last known remaining subsurface mine in the United States.

“It’s the most highly charged bentonite in the world,” she says. “Calcium bentonite clay is from the smectite family of clays. It has astoundingly strong drawing action. It cleanses by pulling out impurities while its dynamic binding power captures and eliminates toxins.” 

Used internally, the clay cleanses the colon of old fecal matter and mucoid plaque, she says. It has a wide variety of uses, from relieving constipation and removing heavy metals to easing stomach and gastrointestinal problems and facilitating recovery from chemical therapies and radiation. Its more surprising benefits include reducing the symptoms of allergies and hay fever.

Its external uses are just as diverse, Drew says. There are the expected dermatological applications—treatment for rashes, acne, cuts, burns, and bruises—but also (literally) deeper benefits, like relief from aching joints and sprained or strained muscles.

“Living clay therapy can provide truly life-changing results that far supersede the temporary effects of laxative teas or over-the-counter detox programs,” she says.

For more information, call 516-640-5322 (Garden City); 732-741-2444 (Red Bank); or 631-656-6313 (Smithtown); or visit CleansingConceptsWorld.com. For online orders, use coupon code save20 to get 20 percent off clay products.