On a daily basis, your body comes in contact with harmful toxins that can cause numerous health challenges and a decreased quality of life. Heavy metals are in our environment and nothing can be done to change that. We can limit the amount of new heavy metal toxins entering our planet (although we haven't done anything about it yet), but the levels that already exist cannot be removed. And when heavy-metal toxins are in the environment, they are in your bodies, with a potentially devastating impact on your health. They're in your food, in your water, your air, your place of work and in your home - you cannot escape them! Lead, mercury, aluminum, cadmium, arsenic, and nickel are in your food, water and air, which means they also are in your body. The Culprits There are 35 metals that concern us because of occupational or residential exposure; 23 of these are the heavy elements or "heavy metals" and include antimony, arsenic, bismuth, cadmium, cerium, chromium, cobalt, copper, gallium, gold, iron, lead, manganese, mercury, nickel, platinum, silver, tellurium, thallium, tin, uranium, vanadium and zinc. Interestingly, small amounts of these elements are common in our environment and diet, and actually are necessary for good health; but large amounts of any of them may cause acute or chronic toxicity (poisoning). Heavy-metal toxicity can result in damaged or reduced mental and central nervous function, lower energy levels, and damage to blood composition, lungs, kidneys, liver and other vital organs. Long-term exposure might result in slowly progressing physical, muscular and neurological degenerative processes that mimic Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, muscular dystrophy and multiple sclerosis. Allergies are not uncommon, and repeated long-term contact with some metals or their compounds might even cause cancer. For some heavy metals, toxic levels can be just above the background concentrations found in nature. Therefore, it's important for us to inform ourselves about the heavy metals and to take protective measures against excessive exposure. In most parts of the United States, heavy-metal toxicity is an uncommon medical condition; however, it's a clinically significant condition when it does occur. If unrecognized or inappropriately treated, toxicity can result in significant illness and reduced quality of life. If you suspect you or someone in your household might have heavy-metal toxicity, testing is absolutely essential. Symptoms indicative of acute toxicity are not difficult to recognize because they usually are severe, rapid in onset and associated with a known exposure or ingestion: cramping, nausea and vomiting; pain; sweating; headaches; difficulty breathing; impaired cognitive, motor and language skills: mania, and convulsions. The symptoms of toxicity resulting from chronic exposure impaired cognitive, motor and language skills; learning difficulties: nervousness and emotional instability; and insomnia, nausea, lethargy, and feeling ill) also are easily recognized; however, they are much more difficult to associate with their cause. Symptoms of chronic exposure are very similar to symptoms of other health conditions and often develop slowly over months or even years. Sometimes the symptoms of chronic exposure actually abate from time to time, leading the person to postpone seeking treatment, thinking the symptoms are related to something else.
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