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Charcocaps for bloating??

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Irritable Bowel Syndrome
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CathyA
Veteran Member
Joined : Mar 2005
Posts : 1601
Posted 4/4/2006 9:18 AM (GMT -6)
Hi all,

   Occasionally I read about using charcoal for gas, instead of something like simethicone.  The other day, I found them at the store and bought some.  But when I got home and paid a little more attention to the ingredients, I saw "edible black ink" listed.  What the heck??  Why would they put that in there?  Is that so when we poop the next time, and it's black, we think it's really doing something???   I'm going to return them.  I just don't think we need to be eating ink! 

  Has anyone ever tried these, and if so, how did they do?  I'd hate to be burping up ink spray all night!

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Keriamon
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Joined : Jun 2005
Posts : 2976
Posted 4/4/2006 10:38 AM (GMT -6)
Squids make ink. I wonder if it is edible? Squids are edible. ROFL

I'm guessing the "edible black ink" is used as a colorant, not an active ingredient. After all, what color should charcoal be? If by making it medicinal it comes out gray, then people might think something's wrong with it and won't use it, so the manufacturers color it up a bit. A lot of our food is colored because of our preconceived notions about what colors things should be, not because it has or needs color. I get some spicy crab dip a lot that is tinted pinky-orange. When I made some from the same ingredient list at home (minus the food coloring), it came out kind of gray (because of the dark crab meat). So either people think that's not an appealing dip color, or they want the pinky-orange color to make it look spicy. You don't imagine gray dip to have cajun spices in it, do you? Cajun spices make food red... or so we think.

Since you bought them, go ahead and try them. If they relieve your gas, then you know they work, regardless of what color they may or may not make your poop. Would you be more willing to try them if instead of "edible black ink" it said "Black #35"? All food dyes boil down to the same thing, really.
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CathyA
Veteran Member
Joined : Mar 2005
Posts : 1601
Posted 4/5/2006 7:40 AM (GMT -6)
Thanks Keriamon,
I suppose you're right...........but "black ink" sounded alot worse than "Black #35"! lol! I just pictured it turning my intestines black, and staining the toilet bowl!
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Keriamon
Veteran Member
Joined : Jun 2005
Posts : 2976
Posted 4/5/2006 9:07 AM (GMT -6)
Yeah, I agree with you on the "edible black ink" thing. Come to think of it, I wonder what DO they make food coloring from? I know Kool-Aid tropical punch will turn your poop red, lol.
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mrmagoo
Regular Member
Joined : Oct 2005
Posts : 78
Posted 4/5/2006 9:09 AM (GMT -6)
I have tried some charcol pills I bought at walgreens, they didn't help at all.
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roadtrip
Regular Member
Joined : Nov 2005
Posts : 106
Posted 4/5/2006 5:04 PM (GMT -6)

hey CathyA,

i would probably be carefull with those charcoal biscuits because burnt food is known to be cancerous. I'm sure the odd one or two to help with bloating every now and then would be fine but i wouldn't have thought they would be a good long term option

just my opinion... :-)

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CathyA
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Joined : Mar 2005
Posts : 1601
Posted 4/7/2006 1:13 PM (GMT -6)
Thanks for the warning roadtrip.
If I'm going to get cancer from charcoal.......I want it to be from eating too many grilled ribeyes. lol!
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Keriamon
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Joined : Jun 2005
Posts : 2976
Posted 4/7/2006 1:52 PM (GMT -6)
I don't know what that charcoal is made out of, but grill charcoal is baked wood. They heat it at high temps and bake all of the moisutre and impurities out of it, so I don't think you can really call it "burnt".
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Foggie
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Joined : Apr 2003
Posts : 924
Posted 4/8/2006 12:44 PM (GMT -6)
By any chance, is there printing of any kind on the capsule?

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CathyA
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Joined : Mar 2005
Posts : 1601
Posted 4/8/2006 5:22 PM (GMT -6)
Hi Foggie,
I'm thinking of returning them, so I don't want to open the package of them, but I can see them in their bubble wrap, and they are bright pink, but I don't see any writing. Why do you ask?
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Foggie
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Joined : Apr 2003
Posts : 924
Posted 4/9/2006 2:24 PM (GMT -6)
Just thinking that perhaps, it could be why edible black ink was listed. You could also call the manufacturer to ask even if you're not going to keep them. If the ink isn't used for printing, I would wonder what it's doing in there too.
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CathyA
Veteran Member
Joined : Mar 2005
Posts : 1601
Posted 4/9/2006 3:12 PM (GMT -6)
Oh.....I didn't think of it being for printing on the capsule!  I think I'll call them.  Thanks.

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Canyonbabe711
Veteran Member
Joined : Mar 2006
Posts : 1451
Posted 4/10/2006 9:04 PM (GMT -6)
I jsut bought some Charcocaps to try and there is black writing on the tablet. My guess is that is what it refers to. they have to put everything down that is used.
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CathyA
Veteran Member
Joined : Mar 2005
Posts : 1601
Posted 4/11/2006 4:18 AM (GMT -6)
Thanks Canyonbabe,
The writing must be on the other side of the capsule, in the package, and I couldn't see it.
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Keriamon
Veteran Member
Joined : Jun 2005
Posts : 2976
Posted 4/11/2006 9:50 AM (GMT -6)
I guess that's why they don't list it as black #35 (or whatever); it's not a food coloring/dye, it really is edible black ink, LOL.

I am surprised the pills are pink, though.
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Canyonbabe711
Veteran Member
Joined : Mar 2006
Posts : 1451
Posted 4/11/2006 4:18 PM (GMT -6)
Better than charcoal colored. LOL, I was surprised also but I hated to think about swallowing something the color of charcoal. I still haven't used them.
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CathyA
Veteran Member
Joined : Mar 2005
Posts : 1601
Posted 4/11/2006 5:49 PM (GMT -6)
Canyonbabe.....can you see the writing on them through the bubble wrap that they're in?  Are your's called "Charcocaps"?

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7Lil
Veteran Member
Joined : Apr 2005
Posts : 3269
Posted 4/14/2006 4:48 PM (GMT -6)
Canyon & Cathy,
Have you tried the charcoal?
I'm just curious to see how/if they work.
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Canyonbabe711
Veteran Member
Joined : Mar 2006
Posts : 1451
Posted 4/15/2006 2:45 PM (GMT -6)
Yes, mine are Charcocaps. They are pink.
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CathyA
Veteran Member
Joined : Mar 2005
Posts : 1601
Posted 4/15/2006 9:26 PM (GMT -6)
7Lil......no, I haven't tried them yet! I'm a real scaredy-cat to try new things! But they're sitting here! Plus, fortunately, I haven't had really bad bloating lately (knock on wood!)
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Canyonbabe711
Veteran Member
Joined : Mar 2006
Posts : 1451
Posted 4/15/2006 11:35 PM (GMT -6)
Mine are sitting here, too. LoL. Somehow the thoughts of taking Charcoal is not sitting well with me though a friend recommended them. I am a scardy cat,too. Meow
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mads
Regular Member
Joined : Mar 2006
Posts : 24
Posted 4/17/2006 1:06 PM (GMT -6)

hi i tired charcol tablets and they did nothing, and yes they looks funny, i broke one in half and loads of grey charchol i guess came out! they did me no harm but did me no help either. but there is no harm in tyring!!they are yummy really!!

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Canyonbabe711
Veteran Member
Joined : Mar 2006
Posts : 1451
Posted 4/17/2006 4:39 PM (GMT -6)
I took mine back today. I just couldn't bring my self to try them and I had not opened the sealed part. How can they be yummy when you don't chew them? Or were yours chewable. These that I had were not.
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CathyA
Veteran Member
Joined : Mar 2005
Posts : 1601
Posted 4/17/2006 6:22 PM (GMT -6)
Yummy?
Mine are capsules. I can't imagine that they'd ever make a chewable charcoal tab! lol! Can you imagine what your teeth and mouth would look like???
I can remember one time, when I was working in the ER, and had to give a "charcoal slurry" to a little kid who'd eaten some pills. Needless to say, both of us were black when it was done!
I've heard of taking charcoal for gas before. It's supposed to absorb it. But like I said, I'm a wuss when it comes to trying something new!
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Seity
New Member
Joined : Jul 2007
Posts : 1
Posted 7/31/2007 11:59 AM (GMT -6)
Well, I don't know about all you people afraid to give this a try, but I swear by Charcocaps. I keep a box at work and one at home. I get really painful intestinal gas. It's trapped gas which causes bloating and can be so bad I can't function. Waiting for 2-3+ hours for it to try and make its way out of my system is not only excrutiatingly painful, but also something I can't leave work for whenever my guts decide to act up. I've tried a number of the gas pills in the pharmacy (GasX, Phasym) they didn't do anything to help. The Charcocaps start working instantly.
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