Well now that we have established that this "new" food is not cheaper ...........
I also find it hard to believe clay has no benifits, they use to say that about mushrooms!
Calcium montmorillonite clay & the 60 mineral compounds ......
This logic or theory originates with mud/clay bottomed Koi ponds in Japan (Dainichi is a Koi based company - NOT cichlids), and the belief by many Koi breeders that mud lined ponds produce better Koi than cement ponds. This logic is based on the belief that the natural mineral content found in mud enhances the fishes color & overal health, as do the natural feedstuffs found in a mud bottomed pond. With the fish feed costing over half the total costs of running a large Koi farm, this would also translate into overall operation savings, espectially if organic & inorganic fertilisers are added to the pond (such a chicken droppings) to maximize the natural feedstuffs found in the pond.
I don't believe that the idea of the adsorption properties of clay ever played into this concept in the early days of breeding Koi, but is more of a recent event since the promotion & sale of this clay by health gurus over the past 25 years or so. While there are scores of vendors selling clay for the use in Koi ponds, I certainly don't see many freshwater or marine people jumping on the clay bandwagon.
While adding trace mineral elements to tap water that's void in certain minerals may be beneficial to some fish, a high quality food will contain an ample amount of these trace elements & minerals in the food itself. If for whatever reason one is still concerned about this, an easy fix would be to add something as simple as a teaspoon of a natural sea salt, or marine salt, to your tank with each water change.
As an example ...........
Analysis: Coarse Grey Sea Salt
Chloride: 51%; Sodium: 32%; Water from crystalization: 7%; Sulfur: 1.12%; Zinc: .87%; Magnesium: .50%; Iron: .38%; Potassium: .26%;Manganese: .026%; Copper: .018%; Calcium: .012%; Silicon: .011%; Micro-Elements: Carbon: .034%; Strontium: .009%; Boron: .004%; Hydrogen: .003%; Fluorine: .001%; Nitrogen: .0008%; Argon: .0005%; Lithium: .0002%; Rubidium: .00014%; Phosphorus: .000112%; Iodine: .00007%; Barium: .00002%; Molybdenum: .000012%; Nickel: .000008%; Arsenic: .0000037%; Uranium: .0000038%; Vanadium: .0000024%; Tin: .0000009%; Cobalt: .00000045%; Antimony: .00000035%; Silver: .00000032%; Krypton: .00000024%; Chromium: .0000002%; Mercury: .0000002%; Neon: .00000012%; Cadmium: .000000112%; Selenium: .0000001%; Germanium: .00000007%; Xenon: .00000006%; Scandium: .00000005%; Gallium: .000000035%; Zirconium: .00000003%; Lead: .000000026%; Bismuth: .000000024%; Niobium: .000000023%; Thalium: .000000022%; Gold: .000000019%; Pico-traces of: Helium; Lanthanum; Neodymium; Thorium; Cerium; Cesium; Terbium; Yttrium; Dysprosium; Erbium; Ytterbium; Hafnium; Gadolinium; Prasodymium; Beryllium; Samarium; Holmium; Lutecium; Tantalum; Thulium; Europium; Tungsten; Protactinium.
If my count is correct, I counted a total of 71 minerals & trace elements. If I really felt the need, which I do not, I could buy a bag of natural sea salt, or marine salt for $25 or less, and at a teaspoon per water change it would probably last me into the next decade.
Some will state that clay will neutralize metabolic toxins. Really, and exactly what toxins would those be?
Where oh where is all of the science to support these claims?
Is using clay in fish food really a good idea?
"Due to these earlier findings, a variety of other common clay and zeolitic minerals are now being added to feeds as aflatoxin binders. Unfortunately, many of these binders due to their interaction with nutrients and other important feedborne chemicals may be nonselective in their action and may pose significant hidden risks." (Abdel-Wahhab et al., 2005).
This has always been something that I've been concerned about; if montmorillonite clay has such high adsorption properties, how does one know that
non-toxic substances (such as essential nutrients & minerals) are also not being adsorbed?
The following comment was made by an MD who is actually very pro montmorillonite clay, yet he too warns about the potential of clay absorbing items of nutritional value, such as vitamins, along with any potential toxins.
"It is important not to take any nutritional supplement at the same time as the bentonite. Especially when used with psyllium, the bentonite will absorb anything of nutritional value such as herbs, friendly bacteria, and vitamins, as well as toxins, bad bacteria and parasites. Be sure to wait 1 hour after drinking a bentonite shake before taking anything nutritional."
Both science, and common sense would lead me to believe that it if one simply wants to add minerals & trace elements to their fishes environment, there are far less complex and safer ways to do so, such as adding a small amount of natural sea salt to their tank water.
For those of you that are eager to feed montmorillonite clay to your fish, how many of you also consume this product yourself with each & every meal?
Hmmmmmm.
