Soil Chemical and Mineralogical Properties of Selected Geophagic Materials.

Soils perform unique functions that are basic to life such as medium for plant growth, regulator of water supplies, recycler of raw materials, habitat for soil organisms, and a medium for engineering. Soils are also a source of compounds that can be used to make health supplements and combat human diseases. Many cultures embrace the practice of ingesting soils for traditional medicine, for dietary supplements, and as pastimes in what has been referred to as geophagy inspite of health Department warnings on the risks of such practice. Today, exploring the use of soil minerals to alleviate problems has become a major part of soil mineralogy. The objective of this study is to describe and characterize the chemical and mineralogical properties of selected soil materials that make them suitable for geophagy and medicinal purposes. Selected geophagic materials from different parts of Nigeria will be studied and characterized with respect to soil morphology, chemical and mineralogical properties. XRD techniques will be employed to characterize the mineralogy of the soils. Wet chemical and spectroscopic analyses will be carried out on the geophagic samples to characterize the chemical composition and the clay structural characteristics of the soils. Evaluation of data from the morphological, chemical and mineralogical analysis should indicate the health and nutrition imperative for the use of the soils as geophagic materials.