Table 3.

Claims about colloidal silver presented on the Website 2.

Claim	Comment	Category
“The silver in colloidal silver water is harmless for humans as pure colloidal metal and as ions. The salts of silver are dangerous. “	Metallic silver is quite inert in the human body, but it can release silver ions through oxidation processes [9]. Silver ions are one of the main factors causing toxicity in soluble silver compounds.	False
“The human body tolerates colloidal silver extremely well making silver one of the safest preparations to be used for the treatment of diseases.”	Therapeutic effects of colloidal silver have not been scientifically proven [18]. AgNPs cause several adverse effects in the human body [15].	False
“Colloidal silver water can be used for treating wounds, acne, burns, chafes, herpes, genital herpes, herpes zoster, insect stings and bites, rashes, psoriasis, fungal infections like athlete’s foot.”	The claim is not scientifically valid [18]. In some cases, silver is still utilized in today’s medicine due to its antimicrobial properties, but the use is limited to topical applications. If silver is inhaled or ingested, there is a risk of accumulation and toxicity [16].	Misleading
“Colloidal silver can be used as a prophylactic against diseases when the immune system is impaired.”	The claim is not scientifically valid [18].	False
“Silver seems to have some kind of a role in our immune system, and it may be possible that the people’s silver intake is insufficient.”	AgNPs are proposed to have immunomodulatory properties, both stimulating and suppressive effects (Lappas 2015). However, silver does not have a physiological role in human body [12].	Misleading