So you want to know what diatomacious earth is and how it works?

[Bear Foot Farm]

So I don’t see why it wouldn’t work after coming in contact with moisture / wet

Because it kills by drying the insects, not just by the cutting action


Most sites promoting DE carry this DISCLAIMER:

Any food grade diatomaceous earth uses other than those approved by the EPA, FDA, or USDA are strictly reports of what hundreds of users as well as we ourselves have done with diatomaceous earth.

In other words, they have no real proof, but rather it's all anecdotal

Here is the ONLY FDA APPROVED use for DE

http://archive.gipsa.usda.gov/reference-library/directives/9180-49.pdf

You can believe the salemen or you can believe the scientists.
Gossip VS Fact​

 

[gingerpeach22]

Diatoms are unicellular algae, (hard-shelled algae) with cell walls of silica. DE (diatomaceous earth) is the fossilized remains of those diatoms. They crush natural, siliceous sedimentary rock into a fine, white powder which you purchase as food-grade DE.

 

[ivan3]

Amorphous Diatomaceous Earth is a desiccant (can absorb ~4 times its weight in water). It kills insects by adsorbing the thin waxy outer layer of the insect and the insect dehydrates. It continues this adsorbing action after the insect is dead (no friction from movement = no cutting, ripping action).

A couple of definitions/explanations of adsorption : http://www.worsleyschool.net/science/files/adsorption/page.html
http://www.rpi.edu/dept/chem-eng/Biotech-Environ/Adsorb/adsorb.htm


Both the commercial industry and developing nations are always on the hunt for greater efficiency at lowest cost. I might not agree with many of the production methods, but their research is always what I read first as they don't jerk around.

An experiment was designed to evaluate the effect of some natural feed additives as alternatives of antibiotic growth promoters for broiler chicks.

Results indicated that performance and immune response of the chicks fed diets containing pro/prebiotic products were higher than those fed diets containing natural mineral clay products. The positive control or the treated group significantly recorded higher body weight than the negative control with an exception of Diatomaceous earth treatment....

... Diatomaceous earth treatments (0.2% or 0.5%) significantly recorded the worst performance and the lowest economical efficiency compared to the negative control or the other treatments. From commercial point of view, biological feed additives of pre/pro-biotics or natural mineral clay as an alternative of antibiotic growth promoter are beneficial with the exception of Diatomaceous earth. Diets supplemented with biological feed additives enhanced the digestibility coefficients of most nutrients better than the controls, however, DE lowered the digestibility coefficients of most nutrients. It is concluded that performance and immune response of chicks fed on biological feed additives were equivalent or even superior to that of antibiotic growth promoter except for Diatomaceous earth.

I'd guess the adsorbent action of ADE might be picking up the nutrients. But that is blue-skying on my part.

The link to research quoted above is in post #20 of this thread: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=295586&p=2 My main interest in all of this is that members don't get ripped-off owing to marketing hoopla (see post #22 same thread).

Please post worming control info. for our perusal, thanks!​

 

[GrumpyOldMan]

Quote:
Because it kills by drying the insects, not just by the cutting action


Most sites promoting DE carry this DISCLAIMER:

Any food grade diatomaceous earth uses other than those approved by the EPA, FDA, or USDA are strictly reports of what hundreds of users as well as we ourselves have done with diatomaceous earth.

In other words, they have no real proof, but rather it's all anecdotal

Here is the ONLY FDA APPROVED use for DE

http://archive.gipsa.usda.gov/reference-library/directives/9180-49.pdf

You can believe the salemen or you can believe the scientists.
Gossip VS Fact​

I don’t for one second take salesmen’s word for anything. I research and talk to people that use a product I’m interested in. Like the people here! A number of people “swear” it works on internal parasites do to personal experience. They aren’t salesmen and have no ulterior motive to get me to by the product.

I understand that if you eliminate the source, i.e. kill the parasites on the ground and kill the host it eliminates the chance of infestation. However, if a parasite is already in an animal, (dog) that animal is the now the host and the parasites will continue to multiply inside that host. They won’t leave or dye off unless treated with some sort of, for lack of a better term, medication. If the only ‘medication’ the person gives the host is DE and the parasite is eliminated how can one explain what happened to the parasite other than the DE did the job?

Once again this is pure conjecture on my part, as I have not tried DE for parasite elimination. What I can attest to is… The first time I ever used it was yesterday. I dusted around the food dish and the hey inside our 3’ x 4’ nighttime coop, (2 chickens, 2 ducks). Prior to and including yesterday morning there were always at least 2 dozen flies around the food and coop. Today I’ve counted maybe 4 flies. Short term testing but I’m pretty sure the results will only get better. If not I’ll be first to admit my mistake.

 

[aprophet]

This is the third week I have been testing DE I do not see any difference in the amount of flies I have I am still catching them on the fly strips this is a really bad year for them. Everything I have read is about the DE being dry and absorbing moisture from the pests, almost as quick as I put the DE down I can see it change color where our ground stays wet.

 

[crossedwires]

Quote:
There have been many studies.
Feel free to show one SCIENTIFIC study that say it's anything other than an insecticied.

as requested

http://www.mtsylviadiatomite.com.au/mod/files/research/DE_Natural_Dewormer_Study.pdf

 

[dawg53]

For all you DE wormer supporters: The next time you get intestinal worms, ask your doctor for some food grade DE to get rid of them. http://www.mtsylviadiatomite.com.au/mod... Study.pdf The very first paragraph (Abstract), last sentence. "Inclusion of a certain grade of diatomaceous earth in the diet of grazing ruminants MAY offer SOME benefits in CONTROLLING internal parasites." That says it all...DE MAY be a preventative, but NOT a treatment for internal parasites. Again, it's useless when wet...just like inside ones body or a chickens or any other animals.

 

[GrumpyOldMan]

Quote:

Most “doctors” refuse to admit any health benefits from any form of “natural” formulas. A doctor’s opinion is the last thing I would trust when it comes to ANY “natural” remedy. Most push what the drug companies pay them to. Not saying DE does or doesn’t work until I actually see if it does or doesn’t. The word may is found in most unbiased reports. Drug companies will say HAS been proven in SOME cases. Another words it may or may not provide the desired effect.

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

Most “doctors” refuse to admit any health benefits from any form of “natural” formulas

That's because most Drs are smart enough to know eating powdered rock won't kill parasites inside the body.​

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

However, if a parasite is already in an animal, (dog) that animal is the now the host and the parasites will continue to multiply inside that host. They won’t leave or dye off unless treated with some sort of, for lack of a better term, medication. If the only ‘medication’ the person gives the host is DE and the parasite is eliminated how can one explain what happened to the parasite other than the DE did the job?

There are hardly any parasites that live their entire life cycle in ONE host

Most pass through one or more INTERMEDIATE hosts.

Take Tapeworms for example. They lay eggs which are eaten by FLEAS. The eggs hatch and a larvae grows inside the flea

A dog eats the flea, and the larvae develops into an adult tapeworm inside the dog

If the dog doesn't eat more fleas that are carrying larvae, the original worms will die eventually

If you feed the dog DE, it simply passes through without any effect on the worms, but it MAY kill fleas that come into contact with the droppings AFTER they dry

In most anecdotal cases, people don't know if the animals are actually infected OR cured, but they make assumptions Unless they do fecal egg counts, they don't know if there are worms, or what kind of worms.

Unless they do the same tests AFTER treatment, they don't know if there has been any real change

If it really worked , it could be duplicated in a lab, and teh results would be conclusive​