Does activated charcoal extend one’s lifespan? Good question! If activated charcoal is known to adsorb hundreds of toxins and waste products in the body it would seem, to that degree that charcoal removes those toxins from the body which seriously impact the quality of life, that there would also be a quantitative benefit in hours, days, or months that it might add to one’s life.

Obviously those hundreds of thousands of patients around the world who rely on weekly visits to hospitals for a dialysis treatment would argue that activated charcoal has in fact extended their lifespan. Those countless souls who have been rushed to a doctor in cases of poisoning or drug overdose and have been immediately prescribed heaping tablespoons of charcoal would also agree charcoal is life saving. But in a far less dramatic way charcoal taken as a digestive aid on a daily basis also impacts the quality and quantity of life.

Rats

“In one animal study, Dr. V. V. Frolkis, a famous Russian gerontologist, and his colleagues, demonstrated that the lifespan in OLD laboratory rats increased up to 34% by feeding them charcoal in their diet! Toxins, including free radicals, are believed to play a significant role in aging. But these “loose canons” will form a stable matrix with charcoal in the gut until they are eliminated from the body. Researchers concluded that the binding up of these toxins in the intestinal tract before they are absorbed or reabsorbed into the system may be one mechanism that allowed the rats to live longer and healthier. CharcoalRemedies.com p. 60

READ fascinating CharcoalTimes article on Longevity and C₆₀

Monkeys

Animal husbandry is becoming more and more active in exploring and marketing charcoal products for a range of different ailments, but some animals just can’t wait for the wheels of progress to catch up with them.

Furry jungle inhabitants have more to contend with than just parasites and microbes. Some of the most nutritious plants that they eat also contain more or less toxic substances called secondary compounds. These compounds act as a defense mechanism against hungry herbivores. Red colobus monkeys on Zanzibar Island, Tanzania prefer leaves of the exotic Indian almond and mango trees. These trees yield leaves high in protein as well as secondary compounds called phenols, which interfere with the monkeys’ digestion.

What could these animals eat to counteract the poisonous nature of the leaves, while retaining their nutritional benefits? For six years, anthropologist Thomas Struhsaker, of Duke University, studied the fascinating feeding behavior of the Tanzanian red colobus.  Besides having a preference for almond and mango leaves they also eat charcoal from charred stumps, logs, and branches, as well as from around man-made kilns. Video Link [We do not agree with the BBC philosophy, but the monkeys are not lying].

“They really go after the charcoal. Bigger monkeys try to take charcoal away from smaller ones. And they come down from the trees to grab pieces much bigger than they can possibly eat, carrying it off with two hands.” A colleague, none other than University of Wyoming chemist, David Cooney, showed that the charcoal had a high adsorptive capacity for phenols. But while the toxic phenols adhered to the charcoals, the proteins did not. Interestingly, birth rates and population densities of the red colobus are significantly higher where charcoal is found in conjunction with almond and mango trees, than where there is no charcoal.” CharcoalRemedies.com p. 171

Whether old rats or young monkeys it is clear charcoal should have a prominent place in every animal diet. One can only wonder to what degree charcoal could benefit the human family.