Dr. Robert O. Becker, MD
Silver Ions & Electromedicine

This document highlights the scientific research of Dr. Robert Becker. Dr. Becker successfully proved the tissue healing properties of silver ions through laboratory studies and in-body experimentation. Author of Body Electric and Cross Currents, Becker has more than 30 years of medical research experience.

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Dr. Robert O. Becker, MD
Silver Ions: Altered Cell Morphology, Anti-bacterial Properties, and
Stimulated Tissue Growth and Healing

Dr. Robert O. Becker, M.D., orthopedic surgeon and medical research doctor, is one of the early pioneers responsible for the resurgence of silver use in medical applications. Dr. Becker's primary area of personal interest has always been exploring the possibility of complete tissue and organ regeneration in humans. Through his fascinating journey which spans over three decades of dedicated research, he has brilliantly explored bioelectric and electromagnetic systems, reaching to understand and control the growth and healing process in complex organisms. Much of the following information was taken directly from the books The Body Electric and Cross Currents.

Robert O. Becker - The Discovery of Silver

Dr. Becker first used silver in 1971. His experiments at this time focused on proving that minute amounts of electrical current could dedifferentiate cells and stimulate limb regeneration in rats. For his experiments, Dr. Becker elected to use a platinum electrode as the negative pole ( cathode ) and a pure silver electrode as the positive pole ( anode ) with a 106 - 108 Megohms resistor wired into the circuit. He implanted the device in 35 rats, and achieved the most notable results using 1 nanoamp of current.

In 1972, Dr. Becker was ready to begin experimentation with electrical stimulation for bone growth in humans, particularly in cases where broken bones ( nonunions ) refused to heal. Again, Dr. Becker chose to use silver, primarily because he believed silver was less likely to chemically react with tissues and he believed that silver would transmit the electrical current most efficiently.

Testing conducted by Dr. Becker's team demonstrated that the positive pole of a silver electrode in a low current circuit would kill all forms bacteria within a 1/2 inch radius. Dr. Becker hypothesized that this effect was due to the delivery of silver ions directly into the adjacent tissues. Never-the-less, his primary concern was that the positive current at the treatment site might cause delays in healing. Up to this point, research indicated that growth stimulation occurred at the negative electrode.

Dr. Becker eventually concluded that while all five of metals they tested stopped growth of all bacteria, the current required for all types except silver required dangerously high levels of current. Dr. Becker hypothesized that the other metals killed bacteria by poisoning the bacteria and normal cells. Eventually, Dr. Becker confirmed that the silver deactivated or killed all bacteria with no side effects with small ( and safe ) levels of current.

Dr. Becker eventually began experimenting with silver-impregnated nylon as a form of wound dressing designed to kill bacteria; he continued to use "positive current" to kill bacteria and "negative current" to stimulate tissue/bone growth. Becker's team commonly used between 100 to 200 nanoamps of electrical current per centimeter of electrode in their research. Dr. Becker concluded that other researchers were using far too much current in related experimentation, and that electricity exceeding one volt posed the possibility of dangerous side effects in nearby tissues.

In 1977, Becker first noticed that the silver anode ( positive pole ) appeared to actually be stimulating bone growth as well as eliminating infections. By 1978 he had repeated this phenomenon a number of times, and decided to reevaluate the theory that only the negative current stimulated tissue growth.

In 1980 Dr. Becker, through extensive research and experimentation, concluded that the current was not the determining factor with this stimulated growth. Rather, it was the silver ions that were responsible for the accelerated healing at the anode. He found that cells within 5 millimeters of the silver were actually altered. In cultures, Dr. Becker demonstrated that silver ions effected cell changes to the extent that the cells grew extremely quickly, producing primitively formed cells including fully dedifferentiated cells and rounded fibroblasts. Furthermore, the process of using silver ions to stimulate healing resulted in a 50% reduction in the healing time.

While it is universally accepted by knowledgeable researchers that silver ions can, in fact, alter cell morphology, some dispute the claim that actual cell dedifferentiation occurs. However, these conflicting findings may be due solely to the actual amount of current used; increased levels of current may in fact interfere with the process. Dr. Becker is virtually alone in the belief that the amount of current used should be minute, approaching the same levels of the natural DC current present in the human body.

Before Becker's research group dissolved, Dr. Becker found that silver ions, electrically injected, could suspend the mitosis of ( cancerous ) malignant fibrosarcoma cells. Dr. Becker hypothesized that cancer cells, regardless of the initial cause, were cells caught in a partially differentiated and primitive state. However, this promising research was never fully explored.

Dr. Becker's conclusion was that low-current silver electrodes stimulate bone formation by dedifferentiating cells and possibly stimulating periosteal cells. Dr. Becker's greatest cautionary note is the observation that high levels of current will stimulate cancer cell growth; the key is low-current with pure silver electrodes.

Research Points of Interest

• Red blood cells of a frog can be dedifferentiated by using extremely small amounts of current, measured in billionths of amperes.
• Bone growth stimulation occurred with platinum electrodes ( at the negative electrode ) at a maximum of 3 micro amps ( generated by a power source delivering an initial 100 micro amperes )
• The average amount of voltage required to induce electrolysis in human tissues was 1.1 volts of direct current ( any amount of current above this point can cause cell damage or cell death )
• Becker's group demonstrated that by using silver electrodes and 0.1 micro amperes of current, bone growth stimulation still occurred, and nonunion fractures healed.
• Dr. Becker noted that cancer cell growth was stimulated by 300% using the 10 microampere method.
• Dr. Becker noted that the combined effect of the proper level of current and the delivery of silver ions could dedifferentiate cancer cells; both elements must be correctly applied for any results ( the activation of primitive-type genes in a cell nucleus ).
• Dr. Becker realized that the silver electrode method could be used on a patient's cells, and that large quantities of primitive cells could be stored for use at later date.

In January of 1980, primarily due to political reasons, the inflow of research grant money stopped, and Dr. Becker was forced to close his laboratory, even though he was likely on the verge of incredible breakthroughs in full tissue and organ regeneration in humans.

View the next page: Silver Iontophoresis

For a detailed analysis of silver iontophoresis technology, view this excellent article:
http://www.rexresearch.com/becker/becker1.htm

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Recommend this page Comments @ Silvermedicine.org This comments section ( by law ) may not be used to provide medical advice All posts requesting dosage or treatment advice will be deleted For anonymous comments, please use this email address: anon @ silvermedicine . org Leave a Comment Show:   Sort: Newest first Oldest first   1-15 of 48 Comments Doc Wayne – Chicago January 29, 2010 - 23:16 Subject: My-O-Matic Does any one have the Frequency Lits for My-O-Matic Microcurrent Machines? Reply to Doc Wayne Mark Levine, DEC – Torrington, CT March 01, 2010 - 16:29 Subject: Re: My-O-Matic I have several Myomatic ($1999) and Electro-Acuscopes ($3999)for sale. 860-601-8788 Frederick M. Brown, Ph.D. – PennState University January 28, 2010 - 14:06 Subject: Dr. Robert Becker I was Dr. Becker's first full-time lab assistant, with him for over three years in the mid '60s, and helped him develop his lab on the 9th floor of the Syracuse VA Hospital. Those were exciting days as we scavaged surplus military equipment to make research apparati, as he fought with hospital clinical administrators to give him money for his basic research. He was awarded Outstanding Researcher in the VA in 1963 or '64, and I was privileged to co-author my first paper with him in Nature on the photovoltaic effects in bone. Referring to the first item of "Research Points of Interest" listed above, I watched that August afternoon in 1966 as the frog's blood began dedifferentiating at a silver electrode's pole, and I then ran to the Med School to get him to see it. I left his lab shortly after that to complete my doctorate at the University of Virginia, and dedicated my dissertation to him, for so many positive reasons. Keith – Michigan January 16, 2010 - 15:48 Subject: Colloidal Silver Killing STD's? Hi, I know of the microbial killing effect of colloidal silver but I want to know if colloidal silver can kill STD's like syphilis and gonorrhea. Thanks. Dr. Thomas Halle – Los Angeles January 05, 2010 - 21:48 Subject: An issue in "The Body Electric" I was glad to come upon this site. On the off-chance there are some other doctors or researchers participating, I'll make a comment. I am just now rereading Dr. Becker's classic, "The Body Electric," and MAN is this inspiring stuff!! Dr. Becker makes is plain that silver works best as an electrode in regenerating, e.g., bone, and while a + lead may be fine for such things as killing bacteria, and perhaps halting cancer cells, one want the - one for bone growth. Then, all of a sudden, at the end of Chapter 8..and then, in Chapter 9, he states the reverse...that the + lead is what you'd want for bone growth. What goes? Someone got confused? Typos?? David – Hotchkiss, Co December 26, 2009 - 10:15 Subject: Testing the Human Voltage Does anyone know what voltage-tester will give accurate readings in the millivolt range that the body produces? Owen September 20, 2009 - 00:21 Subject: Dr Becker Can anyone tell me if Dr Becker is still alive and how he can be contacted please? Reply to Owen peacefully – U.S.A November 19, 2009 - 14:08 Subject: Open Heart Surg. What would be the best way to use Silver on my mother that has just had a 5bypass open heart surg? I will spray topicly and have her ingest also at this time. Would this be effective in healing the cut bones in her chest or just infection prevention. I also have her on 1m Arnica can anyone recommend anything else along with what I am doing. Peacefully. Reply to Owen John – Utah December 05, 2009 - 22:36 Subject: Re: Dr Becker I would be curious too. Dr. Becker was/is a very caring and enthusiastic individual. I too was run out of Dodge by the Syracuse VA; they are still a very political entity. The last I heard, Dr. Becker was living in Germany. He and my father, an electrical engineer, were friends. Dr. Becker ambleepedted my father's leg at the Syracuse VA back around 1959/1960. I cut-off the distal end of one of my fingers in 1982 and within 24 hours went to the VA to ask Dr. Becker what I should do. That is when I found-out he had left the VA. I was fortunate that one of the administrative girls steered me to a journal article. I did everything in the article and the fingertip grew back! I used the same method in my ER work for 20 years -- it still works and finally became the preferred method of treatment! Reply to Owen Dr. Halle – Lost Angeles January 05, 2010 - 22:03 Subject: Re: Dr Becker Please, did you ever manage to procure contact info for Dr. Becker? Kevin Matteson – Boston September 18, 2009 - 13:07 Subject: Someone else to talk to... I discovered The Body Electric when it was recommended by Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming. He is the one to talk to about this subject. The electricity goes where your attention goes, and that's why you can feel tingling in your palms if you concentrate hard and imagine squeezing an invisible ball. When you practice Tai Chi or Chi Kung (Qigong), you feel that electricity all the time. I'm so happy to have discovered Dr. Yang's work, so I thought I'd mention it here. You can visit this article for more info and helpful links: www.examiner.com Reply to Kevin Matteson Silvermedicine.org Admin – Las Vegas, NV September 18, 2009 - 13:42 Subject: Re: Someone else to talk to... Hi Kevin: Thanks... I'm a huge fan of Qi Gong. mike August 19, 2009 - 14:58 Subject: congenitally short femur i am curious if Becker's work has ever been applied to accelerate growth in non-fracture cases such as congenitally short femur. What would happen if the silver anode where used to stimulate a growth plate? It has occurred to me that bone growth might also be stimulated simply by taking advantage of the Piezo-electrical effect that Becker writes about in the body electric. Are there therapies that have been developed to stimulate those piezo crystals to attain specific/predictable outcomes in bone growth. I realize that this site might not have those specific answers but i hoped, if not i might be directed to somewhere or someone wbleepedmight. thanks for your time, mike jimmie – 40701 August 03, 2009 - 13:03 Subject: silver Thanks for the info.... jimmie – 40701 August 01, 2009 - 16:28 Subject: silver I was wondering what could be done if you had a L5-s1 spondylolisthesis.. These two disc are obliterated.. I was told silver could grow bone... Leave a Comment * Your name * Your email address (will not be published) Your website Your location Remember me ? Subscribe: No All comments ? Replies to my comment ? ? 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