Mercury Health Article

Definition

This article discusses poisoning from mercury.

Poisonous Ingredient

There are three different forms of mercury that cause health problems.

• Elemental mercury, also known as liquid mercury or quick silver
• Inorganic mercury salts
• Organic mercury

Where Found

Elemental mercury can be found in:

• Glass thermometers
• Electrical switches
• Fluorescent light bulbs
• Older dental fillings
• Some medical equipment

Inorganic mercury can found in:

• Chemistry labs
• Some disinfectants
• Folk culture medicines
• Red cinnabar mineral

Organic mercury can be found in:

• Older antiseptics, such as red mercurochrome (merbromin) -- this substance is now banned by the FDA
• Thimerosal
• Fumes from burning coal converted into organic mercury by certain organisms
• Fish that have eaten a form of organic mercury called methylmercury -- see article on methylmercury

Note: This list may not be all inclusive.

Symptoms

ELEMENTAL MERCURY

Elemental mercury is usually quite harmless if touched or swallowed. It is so thick and slippery that it usually falls off your skin or out of your stomach without being absorbed.

Considerable damage can occur, however, if mercury is made airborne into small, little droplets and breathed into the lungs. This can often occur by mistake when people try to vacuum up mercury that has spilled onto the ground.

Breathing in elemental mercury will cause symptoms right away (acute) if enough mercury is breathed in. Symptoms will also occur over time (chronic) if little amounts are inhaled every day. If this occurs, symptoms may include:

• Metallic taste
• Vomiting
• Difficulty breathing
• Bad cough
• Swollen, bleeding gums

Depending on how much mercury is inhaled, permanent lung damage and death may occur. You may also have some long-term brain damage from inhaled elemental mercury.

INORGANIC MERCURY

Unlike elemental mercury, inorganic mercury is usually poisonous when swallowed. Depending on the how much is swallowed, symptoms may include:

• Burning in the stomach and throat
• Bloody diarrhea and vomiting

If inorganic mercury enters your blood stream, it can attack the kidneys and brain. Permanent kidney damage and failure may occur. A large overdose may cause massive blood and fluid loss from diarrhea, kidney failure, and death.

ORGANIC MERCURY

Organic mercury can cause sickness if breathed in, eaten, or placed on the skin for long periods of time. Usually organic mercury causes problems over years or decades, not immediately. In other words, being exposed to small amounts of organic mercury every day for years will likely cause symptoms to appear later. Regardless, a single large exposure can also cause problems.

Long-term exposure will likely cause neurological symptoms, including:

• Numbness or pain in certain parts of your skin
• Uncontrollable shake or tremor
• Inability to walk well
• Blindness and double vision
• Memory problems
• Seizures and death (with large exposures)

Medical evidence suggests that being exposed to large amounts of the organic mercury called methylmercury while pregnant can permanently damage the baby’s developing brain. Most doctors will recommend eating less fish, especially swordfish, while pregnant. These recommendations are made to be extremely cautious. Small exposures are unlikely to cause any problems. Women should talk to their doctor about what should and should not be eaten while pregnant.