|
MSM is a well-established dietary supplement, and is used
quite frequently by owners of racehorses. MSM helps racehorses to
recover more rapidly after an intensive run, and they are less prone
to injuries. In recent years, through the research and efforts of
Professor Stanley Jacob, MSM has become a major player in the fight
against chronic pain.
Originally, all MSM was produced in the US by Bergstrom
Nutrition (previously Cardinal Nutrition). Bergstrom
Nutrition is the only dedicated GMP MSM production facility in the
world, eliminating the risk of contamination from toxins like
benzene, toluene or pesticides. Bergstrom’s MSM is called OptiMSM.
In the past several
years, however, MSM is also produced in plants in China and India
and Canada and is imported into the US and EU under the same generic
name but for prices that are less than one-fifth of the Bergstrom
Nutrition made MSM. OptiMSM is pharmaceutical grade quality MSM, and
is produced by the method of distillation. This process removes any
potential impurities, leaving only pure MSM, i.e. OptiMSM. The
quality is supported by a certificate of analysis for each batch
produced, which shows that bacteria and yeasts are absent. The
concentrations of heavy metals, an important potential contaminant,
is specified to be absent near the analytical levels of detection
(for mercury, for example, at less than 0.001 parts per million).
Other producers use the crystallization method, which is a
less expensive production process. In this process, the MSM is
dissolved in water and then dried, trapping any contaminants present
in the water. This MSM comes with certificates of analysis in which
the absence of yeast, bacteria and fungi is often not guaranteed,
and the concentrations of heavy metals is shown as a generic group
at less than 20 parts per million.
HOW DISTILLATION REMOVES CONTAMINANTS
Impurities with high boiling points, such as heavy metals,
remain in the bottom of the distillation vessel (left figure)
MSM is separated from impurities, then condensed as a
highly purified liquid that is then cooled into its final form (right figure)
Contaminants with boiling points below that of MSM are
removed as distillation temperatures approach MSM’s boiling point.
 |
Boiling
Point
3164º F Lead
1409º F Cadmium
1135º F Arsenic
674º F Mercury
478º F MSM Pure distilled OptiMSM
360º F Phenol
209º F Heptane
176º F Benzene |
The photo in the right shows OptiMSM® after
distillation. It is pure, i.e., free of contaminants. The left photo
shows the contaminants left behind during the distillation process
mostly comprised of heavy metals. These contaminants are all still
present in the crystallization method, and although this cheaper MSM
may look white and the manufacturer may claim “99% pure MSM”,
small quantities of heavy metals and other contaminants will be
present in this imported MSM.
The bottom line is that heavy metals in OptiMSM®
are guaranteed to be thousands of times lower than the levels in the
cheaper import MSM. While it is not possible for consumers to verify
this, selecting OptiMSM is a sure way to guarantee that you buy
pure, clean MSM.
return to previous page |
