Why Montmorillonite Powder Can Become a Common Family Medicine

People are queuing up everywhere to buy antidiarrheal medicine. Is this necessary?

In the past two days after the New Year, XBB and montmorillonite powder took turns to be on the hot searches.

Everyone was still worried about the lack of antipyretic drugs before, so stocking up mode started. An XBB rumor instantly sold out the antidiarrheal drug Montmorillonite powder... Now, we know that the statement that XBB struck overnight and caused diarrhea in the whole country is untrue.

It is not wise to rush to buy montmorillonite powder now.

However, COVID-19 infection may indeed affect the digestive tract and cause diarrhea in a small number of people. It is not uncommon for other infections to cause temporary diarrhea on weekdays.

Is it dangerous if there is no montmorillonite powder in the home medicine cabinet?

In fact, it’s okay. Montmorillonite powder is not a necessity for home anti-diarrhea.

1. Montmorillonite powder has limited antidiarrheal effect. The original montmorillonite powder is a product of the French pharmaceutical company Ipsen. It is a traditional French medicine derived from the soil.

The silicate minerals rich in the soil of the French city Montmorillon are the source of montmorillonite powder.

The fine structure of the silicate mineral montmorillonite powder has a special "dioctahedral" structure, making it an adsorbent.

Theoretically, it can adsorb and inhibit viruses and toxins that cause diarrhea in the gastrointestinal tract, thereby achieving the purpose of alleviating diarrhea.

However, theory is theory, and in actual use, the evidence is not that sufficient.

This product has not been applied for marketing in the United States, and research on its use is mainly concentrated in Europe. In the treatment of acute diarrhea, the comprehensive value of montmorillonite powder is lower than rehydration salts, the genuine antidiarrheal drug loperamide, and even lower than some

Probiotic preparations.

In the 2014 European Children's Diarrhea Guidelines, the use of montmorillonite powder is a level IIB recommendation. The positioning can be regarded as having reasonable evidence. I think it is acceptable and can be weakly recommended.

2. The safety of montmorillonite powder is still good. However, although it is recommended by low-quality evidence, montmorillonite powder does have good sales in Europe and China. In addition to the national sentimental influence of the French, montmorillonite does also have

Some security advantages.

Observational studies on long-term use of montmorillonite powder have found no obvious adverse reactions.

Constipation caused by taking medicine is relatively common, but it is not serious, and recovery is quick after stopping the medicine, and it does not cause real trouble.

In 2019, montmorillonite powder also encountered a crisis of excessive lead.

As with any medicine derived from nature, there are risks of heavy metal contamination of various kinds.

At that time, some people in France suspected that the lead in the soil extracted from montmorillonite powder might exceed the standard. The French FDA quickly banned the consumption of montmorillonite powder to those under 2 years old and during pregnancy and lactation.

However, it was done for safety reasons at the time, and there was no actual testing of the drugs, nor were the changes in blood lead of drug users measured.

Subsequently, a study was released on the blood lead measurement of adults who had been using montmorillonite powder for a long time. The result was that there was no change in blood lead after taking montmorillonite powder.

There were no similar sounds later, but the restraining order still existed.

3. How to prepare a home medicine kit to deal with diarrhea.

Therefore, in general, montmorillonite powder is relatively safe. Although its effect on diarrhea is very limited, it is not opposed to being stocked in the family medicine cabinet.

It’s just not a necessity, so there’s no need to worry because there’s no medicine.

Speaking of more suitable home remedies for diarrhea, they can be divided into two aspects: relieving symptoms and discomfort and preventing the progression of the disease.

Relieving the discomfort of diarrhea is actually mainly for the comfort of chrysanthemums. Some specific anti-diarrheal measures are needed when the frequency of bowel movements is excessive.

Children are relatively less prone to anal problems and have high safety requirements for medication, so antidiarrheal is not necessary for children.

If parents are really worried about this, prepare antidiarrheal drugs such as montmorillonite powder and Saccharomyces boulardii that are safe and may help a little.

If adults need to stop diarrhea, genuine antidiarrheal drugs such as loperamide are more effective.

In terms of preventing the progression of the disease, oral rehydration is actually used to combat the dehydration hazards of diarrhea.

Children have higher requirements for the ingredients of rehydration solutions and must use regular oral rehydration salt drugs.

Home oral rehydration solutions for adults usually only deal with mild dehydration. Oral rehydration salts are not necessarily required. Self-prepared sugar saline or sports drinks are acceptable.