SUMMARY

• Heavy metals such as Mercury, Arsenic, Lead, and Cadmium are not meant to be in our bodies. 
• Heavy metals are finding their way into our bodies through the air we breath, the water we drink, the food we eat, the things we touch.
• There is no realistic way to currently completely avoid heavy metals in the United States.

TOXIC METALS

Heavy metals enter the human body through the gastrointestinal tract, skin, or via inhalation. Toxic metals have proven to be a major threat to human health, mostly because of their ability to cause membrane and DNA damage, and to perturb protein function and enzyme activity.
Witkowska, Danuta et al. “Heavy Metals and Human Health: Possible Exposure Pathways and the Competition for Protein Binding Sites.” Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) vol. 26,19 6060. 7 Oct. 2021, doi:10.3390/molecules26196060

FOOD

Heavy metal toxicity is directly related to their accumulation in food. High amounts of these elements generate numerous health issues. Therefore, consumers must choose their food sources carefully. Metals like lead, cadmium, and arsenic are the main elements with high potential health risks. According to the analyzed studies, the highest value for cadmium was registered in lettuce cultivated in Romania; excessive amounts of lead were found in apple samples from Ukraine and Kosovo, but also in lettuce or red potatoes from Romania; and arsenic presented alarming values in lettuce from Florida. 
Scutarașu, Elena Cristina, and Lucia Carmen Trincă. “Heavy Metals in Foods and Beverages: Global Situation, Health Risks and Reduction Methods.” Foods (Basel, Switzerland) vol. 12,18 3340. 6 Sep. 2023, doi:10.3390/foods12183340

RICE

White rice from Thailand, India, and Italy showed higher median concentrations of toxic metal such as As, Pb, and Cd compared to white rice from the US. Lead and Cd concentrations did not exceed the codex standards; however, Arsenic (As) concentrations in brown rice and one white rice from US exceeded the codex standards.
TatahMentan, Mom et al. “Toxic and Essential Elements in Rice and Other Grains from the United States and Other Countries.” International journal of environmental research and public health vol. 17,21 8128. 3 Nov. 2020, doi:10.3390/ijerph17218128

PLUMBING

The most common way that lead enters drinking water is through the corrosion of lead or galvanized iron plumbing.
EPA Frequently Asked Questions about Drinking Water Pilot Study
USS Lead Superfund Site www.epa.gov/uss-lead-superfund-site East Chicago, Indiana January 2017 

DENTAL AMALGAM

In this study reduction of the intensity of symptoms after removal of amalgam restorations was observed, which suggests a possible dose–response relationship. 
Sinha, Nivedita et al. “Health complaints before and at one and five years after removal of dental amalgam restorations - data from a prospective cohort study in Norway.” Acta odontologica Scandinavica vol. 83 219-229. 3 May. 2024, doi:10.2340/aos.v83.40260

WILDFIRES

This study finds elevated concentrations of metals mobilized by wildfires destroying infrastructure in California over the last decade, raising potential health concerns for downwind communities.
Boaggio, Katie et al. “Beyond Particulate Matter Mass: Heightened Levels of Lead and Other Pollutants Associated with Destructive Fire Events in California.” Environmental science & technology vol. 56,20 (2022): 14272-14283. doi:10.1021/acs.est.2c02099

AIR

The study confirmed that diesel exhaust (from trucks, ships, trains, etc.) contributes most of the health risk from air toxics. Hexavalent chromium (in industrial areas) and wood smoke were the next highest, each contributing about 5% of the total risk.
We also found Black, Indigenous, and other people of color and lower income households in our region have higher potential cancer risks from air toxics due to living near major roadways.
Puget Sound Clean Air Agency: Short Summary of the 2023 Tacoma and Seattle Air Toxics Study
https://pscleanair.gov/DocumentCenter/View/5442/2023-Air-Toxics-Community-Report

OLD SMALL PLANES

Aircraft that operate on leaded aviation gasoline are typically small piston-engine aircraft that carry 2-10 passengers. These aircraft are approximately 45 to 47 years old, on average, depending on the type of aircraft. Jet aircraft used for commercial transport, on the other hand, do not operate on leaded fuel. Levels of airborne lead in the United States have declined 99% since 1980, but emissions from aircraft that operate on leaded fuel may still pose risks to nearby communities, including those with environmental justice concerns. 
EPA Determines that Lead Emissions from Aircraft Engines Cause or Contribute to Air Pollution
United States Environmental Protection Agency 2023
https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-determines-lead-emissions-aircraft-engines-cause-or-contribute-air-pollution

FISH

Concentrations of several metals in fish from Sinclair and Dyes Inlets exceeded those found in comparable studies in the same area and were equivalent or higher than fish from other urban bays. Most importantly, mercury in fish in the present study (0.4 mg/kg) approached the FDA action limit of 1 mg/kg. The California limit is 0.5 mg/kg.
Contaminants in Fish and Clams in Sinclair and Dyes Inlet
Washington State Department of Ecology 1992
https://apps.ecology.wa.gov/publications/documents/92e09.pdf

TEFLON: PFOA'S

Dark Waters: Docudrama about Teflon and PFOA's 
A corporate defense attorney takes on an environmental lawsuit against a chemical company that exposes a lengthy history of pollution.
Haynes, Todd. Dark Waters. Focus Features, 2019

WILDFIRES

Accentuated by climate change, catastrophic wildfires are a growing, distributed global public health risk from inhalation of smoke and dust. Underrecognized, however, are the health threats arising from fire-altered toxic metals natural to soils and plants. Here, we demonstrate that high temperatures during California wildfires catalyzed widespread transformation of chromium to its carcinogenic form in soil and ash, as hexavalent chromium, particularly in areas with metal-rich geologies (e.g., serpentinite). In wildfire ash, we observed dangerous levels (327-13,100 µg kg−1) of reactive hexavalent chromium in wind-dispersible particulates.
​Lopez, A.M., Pacheco, J.L. & Fendorf, S. Metal toxin threat in wildland fires determined by geology and fire severity. Nat Commun 14, 8007 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-43101-9

SCHOOL WATER TESTING

Schools must have their drinking water tested for lead at least once between July 1, 2014, and June 30, 2026. Retesting is required at least once every five years beginning July 1, 2026.
Lead Test Results from Drinking Water in Schools
Washington State Department of Health
https://doh.wa.gov/community-and-environment/drinking-water/contaminants/lead/lead-schools/testing/test-results

VITAMIN D RELATIONSHIP

Vitamin D may contribute to the pathologies induced by toxic metals by increasing their absorption and retention. Reciprocally, lead, cadmium, aluminum, and strontium interfere with normal vitamin D metabolism by blocking renal synthesis of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D.
Moon, J. “The role of vitamin D in toxic metal absorption: a review.” Journal of the American College of Nutrition vol. 13,6 (1994): 559-64. doi:10.1080/07315724.1994.10718447

THIMEROSAL PURPOSE

Thiomersal, also called thimerosal, is an ethyl mercury derivative used as a preservative to prevent bacterial contamination of multidose vaccine vials after they have been opened.
Hessel, Luc. “Le mercure et les vaccins” [Mercury in vaccines]. Bulletin de l'Academie nationale de medecine vol. 187,8 (2003): 1501-10.

VACCINES BEFORE 2003

2003: All childhood vaccines with thimerosal as a preservative have passed their expiration date and are no longer available in the U.S. The amount of mercury in vaccines recommended for children is close to zero.
Understanding Thimerosal, Mercury, and Vaccine Safety
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 2011
​https://www.fda.gov/files/vaccines,%20blood%20&%20biologics/published/Understanding-Thimerosal--Mercury--and-Vaccine-Safety.pdf

MULTIDOSE VACCINES

Most vaccines do not have any mercury in them. However, multi-dose flu vaccines and one type of tetanus-diphtheria (Td) vaccine contain a small amount of thimerosal. Flu and Td vaccines are also available in thimerosal-free versions.
Vaccine Basics: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/basics/

LESS DEVELOPED COUNTRIES VACCINES

Newborns and infants in less developed countries have a concentrated schedule of Thimerosal-containing vaccines (TCVs); pregnant mothers are also immunized with TCVs
Dórea, José G. “Abating Mercury Exposure in Young Children Should Include Thimerosal-Free Vaccines.” Neurochemical research vol. 42,10 (2017): 2673-2685. doi:10.1007/s11064-017-2277-x

THE AMAZON AND TWO KINDS OF MERCURY

This study is distinguished from others by assessing co-occurring exposures of organic-Hg forms (chronic high fish-MeHg consumption, and acute EtHg-Al in TCVs from vaccines taken during pregnancy and in infancy). We found neurodevelopment delays to increase with time (from six to 24 months) and that co-occurring Hg exposures to significantly influence only Mental Developmental Index tests in Amazonian children.
Marques, Rejane C et al. “Neurodevelopment of Amazonian children exposed to ethylmercury (from Thimerosal in vaccines) and methylmercury (from fish).” Environmental research vol. 149 (2016): 259-265. doi:10.1016/j.envres.2015.12.022

ETHYLMERCURY STUDIES

22 studies from 1971 to 2019 show that exposure to ethylmercury-containing compounds (intravenously, intraperitoneally, topically, subcutaneously, intramuscularly, or intranasally administered) results in accumulation of mercury in the brain. 
​Kern, Janet K et al. “Examining the evidence that ethylmercury crosses the blood-brain barrier.” Environmental toxicology and pharmacology vol. 74 (2020): 103312. doi:10.1016/j.etap.2019.103312

CIGARETTES

Cigarettes obtained from a sample of smokers in the United States were found to contain metals that could potentially be harmful to human health. The average metal concentrations observed per gram of unburned tobacco were comparable to amounts found in cigarettes on the US, Canadian, and Brazilian markets, but less than those found in cigarettes purchased in China.
Caruso, Rosalie V et al. “Toxic metal concentrations in cigarettes obtained from U.S. smokers in 2009: results from the International Tobacco Control (ITC) United States survey cohort.” International journal of environmental research and public health vol. 11,1 202-17. 20 Dec. 2013, doi:10.3390/ijerph110100202