Is There Lead In Bentonite Clay?

I use bentonite clay in various ways in my home and beauty routine. I slather it on my face, use it to detox my armpits, and it is even an ingredient in my homemade remineralizing tooth powder.

I’ve used bentonite clay in my homemade shampoo alternative, and in a soothing foot soak I often use.

Is There Lead in Bentonite Clay?

If you’ve used bentonite clay in any of these ways, you might have noticed the new warning label about lead. This label is required by Prop 65 in California (which requires hundreds of potentially harmful chemicals to be labeled).

I’ve received many questions and comments from readers asking if there is indeed lead in bentonite clay, and if so, if it is safe to use. Certainly, this is an important question since lead is a very harmful substance in the body and our family uses bentonite clay regularly.

After much research, my short answer is…. yes, there is lead in bentonite clay, but I still feel completely safe using it on myself and my family.

As with any health topic, it is important for you to do your own research on this, but these are the reasons I feel comfortable using it (even with the lead warning).

The Amount of Lead in Bentonite Clay?

To understand why I am unconcerned about the lead content in bentonite clay, it is important to understand why there is lead in bentonite in the first place and the amount present.

Bentonite Clay (also known as Montmorillonite clay) is a naturally occurring element that is composed of hardened ash from volcanos. Much of this clay is harvested from large volcanic deposits across Wyoming, but it is also harvested from the Montmorillon region in France (thus the name) and several smaller deposits worldwide.

Since Bentonite Clay is harvested from the earth and is a natural substance, it contains trace amounts of various elements, including trace amounts of lead.

So how much lead does it contain?

In my opinion, not enough to worry about. Here’s why…

Lead naturally occurs in the earth’s crust and is also present in many things we interact with on a daily basis. Historically, it has been used in cosmetics, paints, and other substances (in fact, hundreds of lipstick brands still contain lead in higher amounts than bentonite, but that is another post for another day)

You know what else contains lead that you probably consume daily? Many foods.

Foods that grow from the earth (fruits, vegetables, nuts, etc.) contain trace amounts of lead. Foods from animals that eat these plants also contain trace amounts of lead. In fact, many unprocessed foods can contain up to 0.4 PPM (parts per million) of lead or more.

For instance, a 2007 study from the FDA found these levels of lead in typical servings of common foods:

Fresh collard greens: 30 micrograms of lead (50x higher than prop 65 stipulates)
Dry roasted mix nuts: 20 mcg of lead
Brussels sprouts: 15 mcg of lead
Sweet potatoes: 16 mcg of lead
Spinach: 15 mcg of lead (source)

The amount of lead present in the commonly used amount of bentonite clay is less than half of the lead found in spinach.

Soil is an even bigger source of lead. Uncontaminated soil contains 50-400 PPM of lead. To put that in perspective, Bentonite Clay contains 11-12 PPM, or less than 0.001%. So the soil in your yard likely contains at least 4 times the amount of naturally occurring lead than Bentonite clay, but even the trace amounts present in clay would be a concern, except…

The Lead Isn’t Bioavailable

This is the often-overlooked part of the lead equation. The lead that is naturally present in many foods and clays is not available to the body.

Lead is dangerous, even in tiny amounts, when it is able to build up in the body. This does not occur with the trace amounts of lead in clays like bentonite for one very important reason:

Lead likes to bond to other elements like silver, copper and zinc.

To understand why this is important, think about high school chemistry. Compounds that would be dangerous on their own, are not in certain combinations. Sodium (a reactive caustic metal) and Chloride (an explosive acid) are harmful on their own in elemental form, but together they form harmless and important NaCl, or salt.

A similar comparison is true with lead. Lead in an un-bonded form (like the isolated form found in some metals, cosmetics or old paint) is dangerous and is important to avoid because it can bond and remain in the body. Lead that has already bonded is not likely to remain in the body.

Lead from natural sources, like dirt and clay, remain bonded when they enter the body. Just as the bond between sodium and chloride is very difficult to break, the bond between lead and another element is not easily broken and does not happen through the normal process of digestion.

This is why there are exemptions in Prop 65 for natural foods like Brussels Sprouts, collard greens, and nuts, which naturally contain moderately high levels of lead and would have to show many times the “safe” level of lead on their labels. Foods like carrots and yams contain over 20 times the legal limit of arsenic, but they aren’t dangerous because the arsenic is similarly bonded.

It is likely that companies that produce and sell Bentonite Clay products could claim this exemption as well, since the lead is already bonded, and it contains much less than the safe threshold according to Prop 65. From my understanding, many companies choose to label anyway to be completely transparent and because mislabeling fines are severe.

Putting It In Perspective

Bentonite Clay contains less lead than many common foods like vegetables and nuts, and much less than uncontaminated soil. Even this tiny amount of lead is already bonded to another element and not likely to release or store in the body.

Even common collard greens contain over 5 times the amount of lead as bentonite clay, and it is considered safe to eat, even under Prop 65.

I’ve been unable to find any actual research showing the potential for harm from the trace amounts of lead in clays like Bentonite and a lot of research showing the potential for some serious benefit.

The Benefits of Clay

It is also important to weigh the benefits of bentonite clay when determining if it is safe to use. I’ve written in depth about the scientifically backed benefits of bentonite clay, but to summarize:

Bentonite carries a strong negative charge which allows it to bond to chemicals and heavy metals within the body and remove them. This process also releases beneficial minerals into the body.
There is now research showing that clays may have properties that make them effective natural antibiotics (this study has some fascinating information on the medicinal uses of clays)
Bentonite pulls excess hydrogen from the body, allowing cells to take in more oxygen.
Clays like Bentonite also have the ability to bond to and remove certain viruses, even potentially rotavirus (source)
Harmful bacteria in the mouth has the potential to affect the body negatively in many ways, which is why I use Bentonite in recipes like homemade tooth powder to help remove these bacteria (and chemicals and heavy metals) before they enter the body.
Interestingly, there is now research showing that while Bentonite does not release lead into the body, it may have the ability to remove it from water, tissue and contaminated sources (source)
I also add clay to my children’s baths to remove fluoride form the water (source) though I am not as diligent about this now that we have a whole-house fluoride filter
Research is still preliminary, but clays like Bentonite may even have the ability to fight MRSA, Salmonella, E.coli and other viruses (source)
Bentonite can pull bacteria, infection, chemicals and heavy metals from the skin, making it an effective face mask and detox soak. This same property makes it beneficial to the hair as it can remove buildup that slows natural hair growth.
I’ve even use clay on my babies (as a natural baby powder) and for our pets (when they had digestive upset) with great results.

What I Do…

As I mentioned before, you should do your own research on any health topic, especially a controversial one like lead exposure.

From my own research, I feel completely comfortable using high quality clays from reputable sources. I personally use clays in these forms for various beauty and natural remedy purposes:

Bentonite Clay from Essential Living (for external uses and detoxing)
Redmond Clay for internal uses, oral health, and as a natural remedy (also great externally)
Earthpaste (clay based toothpaste that I use when I travel and that my children love)

My recipes that contain clay:

Do you use any healing clays like Bentonite? What is your take on them?

Sources

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About Katie Wells

Katie Wells, CTNC, MCHC, Founder of Wellness Mama and Co-founder of Wellnesse, has a background in research, journalism, and nutrition. As a mom of six, she turned to research and took health into her own hands to find answers to her health problems. WellnessMama.com is the culmination of her thousands of hours of research and all posts are medically reviewed and verified by the Wellness Mama research team. Katie is also the author of the bestselling books The Wellness Mama Cookbook and The Wellness Mama 5-Step Lifestyle Detox.

Comments

96 responses to “Is There Lead In Bentonite Clay?”

Cindy

May 31, 2018

RE: “Bentonite carries a strong negative charge which allows it to bond to chemicals and heavy metals within the body and remove them. This process also releases beneficial minerals into the body.”

How can this affect the amalgam fillings in your teeth?

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Marc

May 20, 2018

May I ask you a question? Since you are using bentonite clay, did you ever test your blood for lead levels? If yes, then they are within normal limits? Please let me know.

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Brian

May 20, 2018

There is an issue with some of the facts you have presented here. When you compare the amount of lead in clay vs foods, you are not taking into account the total quantity. So…

The FDA report found that bentonite clay contained up to 37.5 micrograms of lead per gram. Mcg/g is same as parts per million (ppm). With an average oral dose of bentonite clay being 2 Tbsp. (0.72 ounce or 20.4 grams), this means your oral lead dose could be as high as 765 mcg. Compare this number now with the serving size of the food, and you can get a real comparison, which unfortunately shows that clay contains many times more lead than any of the foods listed.

Other people have reported this here as well, but it appears that nothing has been done to address it in any updates. I think it is important for readers to get facts and not be mislead. I believe there is enough proof to justify an edit to make sure this fact is known, that foods contain far less lead than a single serving of clay.

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Michele

April 29, 2018

I recently got an infection on my leg (started out as a small keratosis) & started using clay paste on it. How long should it take to clear up the infection?

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Loraine H.

April 26, 2018

I’m a Mom of 3 and Meme to 2 under-10’s. I have a scientific background and am trained in evaluating scientific studies.
Some answers are in the scientific studies cited at http://www.earthpaste.com/prop65/science/
It IS a compilation of articles, from the manufacturer, but for me, a TRUSTED manufacturer.
They also have full disclosure of their Redmond Clay, 3rd-party analysis, at:
http://www.redmondclay.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/REDMOND-CLAY-MINERAL-ANALYSIS.pdf.

This post explains how lead and other elements/minerals are bound with other atoms to make molecules too large to be absorbed through the digiestive system’s wall. Thus, elements, like Lead are not bioavailable.
The result is a detoxifying effect, due to it’s binding qualities (electrical charge). Due to mandates with mis-information, Redmond and other manufacturers have to label Bentonite Clay “for external use only”, unless considered “Food Grade”. I believe the mountain of evidence shows a high level of safety. A great example of elemental safe consumption is that you would never breathe Hydrogen, as it is flammable and is an asphyxiant, but correctly combined with Oxygen, creates a very life-essential molecule of pure Water.

Decide for yourself and for your family. I for one feel secure that it is a safe product to use. I am skeptical by nature, and always do my own research from credible resources. AND “Moderation in all things” is sage wisdom to be taken seriously.

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Janet

April 23, 2018

From my understanding from lead experts higher levels of lead in the soil are found much farther down. When testing your own soil if you are finding lead levels above 50 ppm you have some sort of contamination from busy roads, pottery, lead paint dust by an old house, etc. Talking with people who have tested their own soil confirm this. Many yards do not have any lead detectable in the ppm. Spinach does uptake a lot of lead but again you are quoting extra high amounts that would be from spinach grown in contaminated soil. Just making sure people know that 100 ppm in a yard is not normal. We can choose where to minimize our exposure. I won’t give my toothpaste swallowing son Earthpaste regularly.

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Kiki

April 2, 2018

What kind of whole house water filter do you use? We have been looking for a while

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1. Katie – Wellness Mama
  
  April 2, 2018
  
  We have this one: https://wellnessmama.com/go/whole-house-filter/
  
  Reply
Jessica P

March 8, 2018

I’m understand everything but this:

Lead from natural sources, like dirt and clay, remain bonded when they enter the body. Just as the bond between sodium and chloride is very difficult to break, the bond between lead and another element is not easily broken and does not happen through the normal process of digestion.

WHAT is the other thing that it is bonded to? You said it’s not bioavailable because it’s already bonded…but to what is it bonded that makes it safe? And if it is already bonded, how would it be able to bond and draw out other harsh elements from our bodies like the benefits list states?

I would really like to buy this bentonite clay for my little dude, but I’m trying to make sure I’m as educated as possible. Thanks so much!

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sarah

March 1, 2018

Am I missing something? Lots of “natural health” sources claim that the lead in bentonite clay isnt bioavailable and therefore not absorbed by the body, yet I have not seen even ONE study showing this to be true…….. no source except from the clay manufacturers or other uncited natural lifestyle blogs…… hmm…….

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Diana

January 25, 2018

I have a question- so for the past 5 days I have been consuming a Bentonite clay- Aztec secrets. And I mistakenly assumed that it was fine for consumption because it says it’s 100 percent pure. And didn’t understand there are some brands labeled as “food grade”. This one says on the back it’s for external use only. I am just concerned about if what I’ve been doing is going to have harmful effects because it stated it was only for external use.

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Keisha Marie

January 7, 2018

Wow very informative

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Monica

January 3, 2018

A friend told me about making toothpaste using Bentonite Clay and essential oils. I tried it and have to say my teeth have never felt cleaner. It is like getting your teeth polished at the dentist every time you brush! I haven’t been using it long enough to say if my teeth are getting whiter, but they sure feel great and I have a dental checkup next week so we’ll see how that goes. All in all, though, I would definitely recommend you give this a try!

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Arya

December 15, 2017

Will you please give me your reputable sources information so that I may verify that lead is ok in trace amounts? I find your advice shocking especially since by childrens doctor said that no amount of lead is safe?

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Anne

November 29, 2017

Hello! I came across your article on the internet. As a PhD student in chemistry I felt I needed to correct a few things that I think are not true (with all respect). Salt (NaCl) is soluble in water, therefore we ingest Na+ and Cl- which have essential roles in the body. Only in higher concentrations than needed, they can cause or worsen health problems (high blood pressure, heart diseases etc..).
As of bentonite, it is indeed widely used in cosmetics and food. It has shown to provide health benefits (decrease side effects of drugs, promoting well being..). However, some other studies suggest that it could be responsible for increasing oxidative stress and damage cell membranes. The toxicological aspect is still not well known and it depends on the amount ingested, the origin of the clay, the treatment it has undergone before use etc
I have a few interesting articles about it if you would like to take a look I would be happy to share them with you.

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Tami

October 27, 2017

This was such a great article. I have been so scared about the lead in the Redmond clay. You have put my mind at ease . It makes total since. I have a daughter that is in pain a lot. Nothing works. I am using this .
Thank you

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Sarah

August 1, 2017

Your post claims that “Research is still preliminary, but clays like Bentonite may even have the ability to fight MRSA, Salmonella, E.coli and other viruses (source)” I think that it is important to stress that not only is the research that your sourced preliminary, but the scientist did a great deal of processing the clay in this experiment, for one example it says, “Before use in any susceptibility testing, all mineral samples were sterilized by autoclaving at 121°C for 1 h.” But, an important note on this study that I think should have been mentioned in the post, is that the study is in vitro. I think that these studies could definitely be promising, but I do not think these scientist would suggest using the bentonite clay carelessly. This was an in depth study, considering many factors and yet scientist still have long way to go to establish how to use the clay properly, safely, and in what amount.

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Elly

January 10, 2017

Thank You for this great article. I have been using clays for years, then today I read an article by a Doctor C. and he was saying how dangerous the amount of lead in clay was and he even said dangerous lead in bone broth with cow collagen and chicken gelatin is dangerous… Give me a break! Everything on earth is contaminated by man and we do not live in a bubble,! there are worst things out there than a trace amount of lead in these healing clay. Just look up in the sky, criss-cross DAILY with Chem Trails. He needs to write and complain about that and not about natural clay.
Thank you for your great article.

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linda

August 13, 2016

katie, i’ve been reading up about bentonite clay as i figured with people having such great results i was ready to give it a try if it indeed seemed safe. i was curious as to your statements as to what amount of lead is in bentonite clay and did some searching on this. first, the CDC says:

“No safe blood lead level in children has been identified. Even low levels of lead in blood have been shown to affect IQ, ability to pay attention, and academic achievement. And effects of lead exposure cannot be corrected.” https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/acclpp/blood_lead_levels.htm

so, is there lead in some foods? yes, but i’m not at all sure the statistics you’ve posted are accurate as the commenter Chris above has mentioned. the amounts in those FDA tables are significantly less than anything there is in the info you posted above from Redmond. of course they are selling the product so will not be unbiased. in the comments on a post i’m linking to about Earthpaste toothpaste & the bentonite clay it contains which is from Redmond Clay there is info saying how they are skewing the statistics. the post itself is from Lead Safe America Foundation, a non-profit started by a woman whose children have lead poisoning. here is what she posted:

“In December of 2013, when we contacted Earthpaste to ask how much lead was in the product, we were informed that Earthpaste had tested their product and it has approximately 11.9 parts per million lead in the clay that that is the base of (and largest ingredient in) the product. [see this PDF from Redmond with their analysis: RedmondClay_MineralAnalysis]

The amount of lead that is considered toxic in water is 15 parts per billion! With 11.9 parts per million—Earthpaste has THREE ORDERS OF MAGNITUDE more lead – way above what is considered safe for something children might ingest daily (especially given it is recommended that kids brush their teeth daily – and at least twice a day.)”

she said the following in the comments & there is much info in the comments on that post from others as well:

“Even if you don’t swallow your toothpaste, a certain amount remains in your mouth and gets in to your body (with any body product.) There is no safe level of lead for humans, and the federal standard for water (for example) is that water is considered unsafe at 15 parts per billion. With the main ingredient of Earthpaste (the Redmond Clay) coming in at 11 parts per million (by their own white paper for their product) and ranging from 3 to 15 parts per million (based on my XRF testing of some samples) the amount of exposure is considerably higher than even what the feds consider toxic. I use a non-clay based, non-fluoride toothpaste myself. Baking soda is a good option as well.”

honestly, i am no chemist so can’t say whether or not all this is factual but this sure gives me pause. the fact that with toothpaste a child or adult will be ingesting some is worrisome. i don’t know if there is a safe level for adults but the CDC does say there is none for children. unless i’m misunderstanding, and please correct me if i am, going by the FDA link in the above comment by Chris, it does sound like Earthpaste’s & Redmond’s levels of lead are much, much higher in comparison to other foods as Redmond is claiming. also, the amounts of lead in water in the Earthpaste are much higher than what the lady at Lead Safe America reports are the federal safety guidelines.

In summary that i don’t think the risks of lead exposure in products containing bentonite clay are worth it, especially not for children where lead exposure has much more serious effects. i think there are enough safer alternatives out there that it is wise to use those alternative products instead. if i am wrong in anything i posted here please do correct me. it certainly is difficult as laypeople for all of us to know these days what is safe and what isn’t and to accurately read these scientific studies. best, linda

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1. Greg
  
  September 29, 2016
  
  Thanks for all the good comments here. Linda, I agree you. Was going to try internally. I suppose one interested in internal use can get the bentonite tested. Buy bunch of jars and have a few jars tested for lead and go from there.
  
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Jennifer Griffith

August 12, 2016

I have been a frequent user and consumer of Great Plains Bentonite Clay for well over a decade. About 10 days ago, I took Great Plains bentonite clay in an attempt to help detox my body. I ended up with verified lead poisoning, impacting my liver, gallbladder, spleen, stomach, lungs and upper respiratory system. It’s been hell-a-ceous to overcome, and I am still not there. Use with caution!

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1. Greg
  
  September 29, 2016
  
  Sorry to hear of this experience. Thanks for sharing the potential dangers of internal bentonite use. I was really looking forward to using this clay for this purpose. Wishing you a speedy recovery!
  
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Chris

May 27, 2016

I think you’ve got some skewed numbers there, Wellness Mama. I found the FDA article discussing the amounts of lead in foods. I found it by following links in your article to the source.
http://www.fda.gov/downloads/Food/FoodSafety/FoodContaminantsAdulteration/TotalDietStudy/UCM243059.pdf

I used the Mean column (someone correct me if that’s wrong) and I see it is in milligrams per kilogram. Since there are 1 million milligrams in a kilogram, 1 mg/kg relates exactly to parts per million (PPM).

Per the FDA, collards have 0.011mg/kg or 0.011ppm. Bentonite clay has 11-12ppm or 11-12mg/kg. Thus, I calculate that Bentonite clay has 1,000 to 1,091 times more lead than collards.

Am I wrong?

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1. CJ
  
  January 12, 2017
  
  Your calculation is correct,but you also need to look at the amount consumed to compare the total amount. Based on a serving size of 1 cup cooked collard greens weighing 225 mg and the maximum amount found of 0.136 mg/kg, the maximum amount of lead in a serving is 30 mcg. I don’t know how much is in a serving of Redmond Clay, but comparing it to the Earthpaste, it is 5 times the amount in the Earthpaste.
  
  Reply