Heavy metal toxicity is a very general subject and people experience widely varying symptoms in response to heavy metal poisoning.
There are many individual metals causing varying degrees of illness based on acute and chronic exposures. Heavy metals is the term used for a group of elements that have particular weight characteristics. They are on the “heavier” end of the periodic table of elements. Some heavy metals – such as cobalt, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, strontium, and zinc – are essential to health in trace amounts. Others are non-essential and can be harmful to health in excessive amounts. These include cadmium, antimony, chromium, mercury, lead, and arsenic – these last three being the most common in cases of heavy metal toxicity.
Sources of toxicity can include environmental, water supply, industrial, hobbies, and others, thus a full history of the person’s work and living habits can help pinpoint potential heavy metal sources.
Causes of arsenic toxicity include ingestion of arsenic (found in insect poisons), skin contact (e.g. some linseed oils) and even drinking water.
As an example of the scope of a heavy metal’s toxicity, lead can affect the nervous system, gastrointestinal system, cardiovascular system, blood production, kidneys, and reproductive system.
Symptoms of heavy metal toxicity include mental confusion, pain in muscles and joints, headaches, short-term memory loss, gastrointestinal upsets, food intolerances/allergies, vision problems, chronic fatigue, and others. The symptoms are so vague that it is difficult to diagnose based on symptoms alone.
A diagnosis can be made with a deep blood and urine analysis.
Treatment
Detoxification – Chelation therapy
Chelation therapy is one of several effective treatments for lead poisoning, poisoning by some other toxic metals, and iron overload due to blood disorders and/or multiple blood transfusions.
The human body cannot excrete some metals, which can build up to toxic levels and interfere with normal functioning. Chelation therapy lowers the blood levels of metals such as lead, mercury, cadmium, and zinc by attaching to them, which helps remove them through urination. In the process of chelation, a larger protein molecule surrounds or encloses a mineral atom. The purpose of chelation is to increase the flow of blood to the vital organs and tissues of the body by reducing calcium deposits in the arteries and blood vessels.
When administered by a properly-trained physician and given in conjunction with lifestyle and dietary changes incorporating specialized nutritional supplements, the procedure is an option to be seriously considered by any person suffering from coronary artery disease, cerebral vascular disease, brain disorders resulting from circulatory disturbances, generalized atherosclerosis and related ailments which lead to senility and accelerated physical decline. Chelation reduces the likelihood of complications from Type II plaque, the kind involved in most cardiovascular events, and improves circulation.
Chelation benefits every blood vessel in the body, from the largest artery to the tiniest capillaries and arterioles, most of which are far too small for surgical treatment or are deep within the brain or other vital organs where they cannot be safely reached by surgery. In many patients, the smallest blood vessels are the most severely diseased. The benefits of chelation occur from the top of the head to the bottom of the feet, not just in short segments of a few large arteries which can be bypassed or opened by other invasive treatments.
