Abstract

The use of kaolins in health has its origins in prehistoric times. Humans and other animals consume kaolin for gastrointestinal ailments, digestive enhancement, and possibly nutritional supplementation. Kaolins are effective as hemostatic wound dressings, because they can clot blood from traumatic injury, with little damage to tissue. Various forms of kaolin have been shown to be antibacterial, and increasingly kaolins are being utilized in drug delivery. While nanoparticles of kaolin can have deleterious effects on human tissues, modern understanding of the mineralogy of kaolins and their interactions with human cells allows many health applications, reaching far beyond the prehistoric “first aid” uses.

Keywords

kaolin; health; geophagy; drug delivery; antibacterial; wound dressing

Published in

Elements
2014, Volume: 10, number: 3, pages: 207-211
Publisher: MINERALOGICAL SOC AMER

SLU Authors

• Hillier, Stephen

  • Department of Soil and Environment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

UKÄ Subject classification

Geochemistry


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2113/gselements.10.3.207

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/65479