Heavy Metal Poisoning: what you need to know now

Heavy metal poisoning or toxicity is the accumulation of heavy metals, in toxic amounts, in the soft tissues of the body. Symptoms and physical findings associated with heavy metal poisoning vary according to the metal accumulated.

Many heavy metals, such as zinc, copper, chromium, iron and manganese, are essential to body function in very small amounts. But, if these metals accumulate in the body in concentrations sufficient to cause poisoning, then serious damage may occur.

The heavy metals most commonly associated with poisoning humans are lead, mercury, arsenic, aluminium and cadmium. Heavy metal poisoning may occur as a result of industrial exposure, air or water pollution, foods, medicines, improperly coated food containers, or the ingestion of lead-based paints.

What are the symptoms of heavy metal poisoning? 

The symptoms of heavy metal poisoning vary, depending on the type of metal involved.

General symptoms

Common symptoms across several types of heavy metal poisoning include:

• diarrhoea
• nausea
• abdominal pain
• vomiting
• shortness of breath
• tingling in your hands and feet
• chills
• weakness

Children with heavy metal poisoning may have unusually formed or weakened bones. Pregnant people may also have a miscarriage or deliver prematurely.

Metal-specific symptoms

Certain types of heavy metal poisoning can cause additional symptoms. Here’s a look at the symptoms linked to some of the most common types.

Mercury poisoning symptoms:

• lack of coordination
• muscle weakness
• hearing and speech difficulties
• nerve damage in your hands and face
• vision changes
• trouble walking

Lead poisoning symptoms:

• constipation
• aggressive behaviour
• sleep problems
• irritability
• high blood pressure
• loss of appetite
• anaemia
• headaches
• fatigue
• memory loss
• loss of developmental skills in children

Arsenic poisoning symptoms:

• nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea
• red or swollen skin
• spots on your skin, such as warts or lesions
• unusual heart rhythm
• muscle cramps

Cadmium poisoning symptoms:

• fever
• breathing problems
• muscle pain

What causes heavy metal poisoning?

Heavy metals can enter your body in different ways. You might consume them in the food you eat or absorb them through your skin, for example.

Here’s how you might be exposed to various heavy metals. Keep in mind that heavy metal poisoning occurs with heavy or frequent exposure, usually over a long period of time. Occasional exposure won’t lead to heavy metal poisoning.

Arsenic

• working near a hazardous waste site
• living in an area that has high levels of rocks, water, and soil
• ingesting insecticides, pesticides, or herbicides
• eating contaminated seafood or algae
• drinking contaminated water

Cadmium

• working in an industrial setting, especially one where ore is processed or smelted
• welding on alloys that contain cadmium or using silver solders
• inhaling cigarette smoke

Lead

• living in a home with high levels of lead-based paint
• doing industrial construction work, radiator repair, or smelter operations
• being in firing ranges
• using kohl cosmetics
• applying progressive hair dyes, though the U.S. Food and Drug AdministrationTrusted Source (FDA) is working to change this
• using foreign digestive remedies, calcium products, kohl, Surma, kajal, or progressive hair dyes

Mercury

• mining, producing or transporting mercury
• mining and refining gold and silver ores
• consuming contaminated fish or water
• manufacturing mirrors, X-ray machines, incandescent lights, or vacuum pumps

While anyone can develop heavy metal poisoning, children are more vulnerable to it, particularly lead poisoning. Older homes sometimes contain lead paint. If a child touches a wall with lead paint before touching their mouth, for example, they may be exposed. This can lead to brain damage since their brains are still developing.

Still, according to the National Organization for Rare Disorders, the number of children with signs of potentially harmful lead levels has dropped by 85 per cent over the last 20 years.

How do I know if I have heavy metal poisoning? 

Doctors can usually check for heavy metal poisoning with a simple blood test known as a heavy metals panel or heavy metal toxicity test.

To do the test, they’ll take a small blood sample and test it for signs of heavy metals. If you have symptoms of heavy metal poisoning, but your blood test only shows low levels, your doctor might do some additional testing.  

These may include:

• kidney function tests
• liver function studies
• urine analysis
• hair analysis
• fingernail analysis
• electrocardiograms
• X-rays

Nowadays, there are also machines (bioresonance) which detect heavy metals in the body, in alternative therapy modalities.

Where Do Heavy Metals Come From?

• Mercury poisoning is one of the most common types of heavy metal poisoning. Almost every single person in the world has at least trace amounts of mercury in his or her body. Why? Some of the factors that can cause mercury poisoning (and other types of heavy metal toxicity) include:
• Exposure to environmental pollutants, such as traffic fumes, air pollution, food contaminants, cigarette smoke or radiation.
• Having metal amalgam dental fillings (silver fillings slowly release mercury into the body).
• You are eating a poor-quality diet (for example, eating farm-raised fish that carry high levels of mercury). According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the most common way we’re exposed to mercury in the U.S. is by consuming fish you shouldn’t eat that contains health-hazardous heavy metals, such as tilefish, swordfish, shark, king mackerel and bigeye tuna. (6) A diet that includes processed foods, especially those imported from foreign countries and not organically grown (and even plant foods grown in soil with high levels of metals) can also be a contributing factor.
• Drinking water that is contaminated with trace amounts of metals (such as aluminium).
• From birth (heavy metals can be passed down in utero from mother to her offspring).
• Exposure or use of household substances that carry mercury, such as adhesives, air condition filters, cosmetics, fabric softeners, felt, floor waxes and polishes, and talcum powder.
• Getting tattoos.
• Exposure to substances that carry lead, such as some chocolates, canned foods, toothpaste, old paints, insecticides, ceramic and some pottery, and soldered pipes.
• Use or exposure to other household items, such as antiperspirants, baking powder, certain baby formulas, plastic toys, antacids, aluminium foil, individual metal pots and pans, stainless steel cutlery, coins, and some makeup.
• Possibly receiving certain vaccinations.
• In mercury-amalgam restorations were used years ago for tooth cavities.  People need to remove those amalgam restorations and replace them with resin.
• In high amounts, mercury is one of the deadliest metals there. Certain studies have found that when nerves are exposed to mercury, the myelin sheath (the fatty substance that surrounds the axon of some nerve cells and helps with electrical signalling) can become severely damaged, interfering with how nerves communicate.

How is heavy metal poisoning treated? 

For mild cases of heavy metal poisoning, just eliminating your exposure to heavy metals can be enough to treat the condition. Depending on the underlying cause, this might mean taking some time away from work or changing your diet.

Your doctor can give you more specific recommendations on how to reduce your exposure.

For more severe cases, the standard treatment is chelation therapy. This involves giving medication, either through a pill or injection, that binds to the heavy metals in your body.

These medications are known as chelators. As they bind to the metals, chelators help to usher them out of your body as waste.  The most common way to remove toxins from the body is through chelation. Chelation therapy is a medical procedure that involves chelating agents to remove heavy metals from the body by binding to heavy metal toxin ions and allowing them to be dissolved and excreted in the urine.

How do Humans get rid of heavy metals in South Africa?

Cilantro or Coriander is best used in conjunction with chlorella, which is a kind of green algae and together they act as s perfect tool for body detoxification. The leaves of the cilantro plant have potent anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, antifungal, antimicrobial and significant chelating properties, that bind to heavy metals that are removed from the body through our excretory system. Chlorella with cilantro needs to be taken 3 times a day for up to 3 months. According to various studies that heavy metal chelation using cilantro and chlorella can naturally remove an average of 87% of lead, 91% of mercury, and 74% of aluminium from the body within 45 days.

Zeolite Powder, is a volcanic mineral supplement with dramatic detoxifying effects. Fulvic Acid, Extracted from Canadian Sphagnum moss. It contains more than 72 minerals and trace elements which assist with the uptake of nutrients and removal of toxins.