GRAEDONS | People's Herbal Pharmacy Use of colloidal silver might turn kids gray

Q. My daughter and her husband make their own formulation of colloidal silver. They think this mixture protects them against the flu and other infections because it provides a natural boost to the immune system. My main concern is that they give it to their children, a little boy age 2 and a girl age 7. Any advice you can offer would be appreciated. Sign me a concerned grandmother!
A. Colloidal silver is frequently promoted as a natural infection-fighter, capable of killing hundreds of bacteria and viruses. Web sites advertise it to treat AIDS, cancer, herpes, shingles, flu, pneumonia and dozens of other conditions. The Food and Drug Administration has not approved colloidal silver and does not recognize it as safe or effective. Long-term use, especially by children, could lead to argyria. This turns people's skin bluish-gray. This permanent discoloration can be disfiguring. We urge your daughter to reconsider this approach.
Q. I was interested to hear that chocolate is good for blood vessel flexibility. I thought you might be interested in a study at the University of Helsinki about chocolate and expectant moms.
They monitored 300 women and found that babies born to women who indulged in chocolate on a daily basis laughed and smiled more than those of the moms who abstained. They also said that the babies of stressed women who ate chocolate showed less fear than those of stressed women who didn't have any chocolate. I was as excited about this news as I was when I found out about the antioxidant properties of dark chocolate!
A. This study was published in Early Human Development (February 2004). You're right that chocolate-loving mothers had babies who seemed happier and more relaxed. Other candy, like licorice, did not produce similar benefits. Studies show that chocolate has many health benefits. It can lower blood pressure, make blood vessels more flexible and help prevent blood clots.
We are sending you our 100-page book "Chocolate Without Guilt." It has recipes for low-fat chocolate desserts. We'll include an hour-long CD radio interview with experts discussing the health benefits of chocolate. Anyone else who would like this combination, please send $19.95 to: Graedons' People's Pharmacy, No. CWG-476, P.O. Box 52027, Durham, N.C. 27717-2027.
Q. For years, I have been plagued with terrible leg cramps. Neither quinine pills nor tonic water helped much, and I often spent half the night up with cramps.
I read another syndicated medical column in the paper, and I love the fact that the doctor is not afraid to pass on a few folk remedies. One suggestion sent to him by a reader was to put a bar of soap (not Dove or Dial) beneath the bottom bedsheet.
Under the cover of darkness (so my husband, who is an M.D., wouldn't see), I slipped a bar of soap beneath the sheet on my side of the bed. For two nights I continued to have mild leg cramps but by the third night they were gone. I have not had them since.
According to the syndicated physician, others have written to say it works. There are so many oldsters who would welcome this inexpensive cure for leg cramps.
A. We have heard from other readers who had success with this approach. We don't know why the soap may help. But it is an inexpensive, low-risk approach.
XIn their column, Joe and Teresa Graedon answer letters from readers. Write to them in care of King Features Syndicate, 888 Seventh Ave., New York, N.Y. 10019, or e-mail them at pharmacy@mindspring.com or via their Web site: www.peoplespharmacy.org. Their latest book is "The People's Pharmacy Guide to Home and Herbal Remedies" (St. Martin's Press).
& copy; 2004 King Features Syndicate, Inc.