How can we tell if it's mercury poisoning?
Mercury
poisoning can be rapid or slow and depends heavily on the amount of mercury
exposed to. Mercury in any form is poisonous. The encounter with mercury can
have different forms such as inhalation, ingestion, injection, and absorption
through the skin.
Methylmercury
is an organic compound of mercury; it’s most commonly found in fish. Mercury
pollution in water results in aquatic organisms converting elemental mercury
into methylmercury. The way it’s consumed by fish allows it to be tightly bound
within the fish that almost all cooking methods cannot remove it.
The
most deadly form is methylmercury. A small percentage, 2-10%, of the ingested
mercury is absorbed while elemental mercury is not absorbed at all. The
gastrointestinal tract absorbs 90% of ingested methylmercury into the
bloodstream.
Symptoms
of mercury poisoning can be categorized into three types depending on the form
of mercury encountered:
1)
Elemental or vaporized mercury:
High
exposures to elemental mercury can cause kidney malfunction, respiratory
failure, and death. Other symptoms include headaches, muscle twitching,
and decreased cognitive functions.
2)
Organic mercury:
Organic
mercury toxicity can causes neurological malfunctions, and especially
in a fetus, impaired neurological development. Pregnant women
who have had methylmercury toxicity effects were apparent on their
children. Developmental impairments like reduced thinking ability, memory
and attention span, as well as effects on motor skills of various degrees.
3)
Inorganic mercury:
This
may cause skin rashes and inflammation, tissues dissolve, and bloody
diarrhea. If mercury spreads to other organs mental changes may occur,
such as mood swings or memory loss. Renal damage or muscle weakness
may also result.
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