Best Way to Detox From Mercury

If exposure to mercury has made you ill, this is no small matter. Mercury poisoning can lead to kidney failure, brain damage and even death. So this is not a time to rely on a "detox" method that involves quack science. The best way to detox from mercury can only come from one person: your medical care provider.

The First Rule: Avoid Quackery

• Health conditions that result from ingestion or inhalation of or exposure to mercury result in very obvious, debilitating symptoms. Moreover, they cannot be treated with online products that claim to eliminate mercury from your body--the only thing that these products will "detox" is your bank account. Many such scams have already been exposed. In the early 1990s, many people were exposed to a "mercury scare" that had them convinced that the amalgam used in their dental fillings was causing various mercury-related illnesses. This resulted in patients having their fillings removed out of fear. Then a 1998 report on dental amalgam safety issued by the American Dental Association Council on Scientific Affairs issued a report on dental amalgam safety that concluded that while minute levels of mercury were released from dental fillings, they posed no health risks.

  However, it's up to you, the consumer, to make an educated choice, given the information provided to you by a qualified medical professional. The fact is, mercury can only be removed from the body through medical procedures, some of which are extremely invasive. The best way that your body will be "detoxed" from mercury depends on the type of mercury to which you have been exposed and the manner in which it entered your body. Below are some of the ways in which mercury enters the body and the best ways of treating mercury-related illnesses.

Have Your Been Exposed to Mercury?

• There are three types of mercury that cause serious health problems. The first is elemental mercury (e.g., liquid mercury, quicksilver), that can be found in glass thermometers, electrical switches, fluorescent light bulbs, older dental fillings and some types of medical equipment. The second type is inorganic mercury salts used in batteries, chemistry laboratories, certain disinfectants, folk medicine cures and red cinnabar. The third type is organic mercury, which is found in defunct antiseptics, such as mercurochrome, which has been removed from the consumer market for this reason. It's also found in thimerosal, fumes from burning coal and fish that have ingested mercury.

  Elemental mercury from thermometers is harmless when you touch it, as it slides off of the body. However, if it's inhaled into the lungs, it can cause vomiting, difficulty breathing, coughing and bleeding gums. People who inhale mercury of this type generally note a metallic taste in their mouths. Permanent lung damage, brain damage and death can result if mercury is inhaled.

  Inorganic mercury is poisonous when ingested, and results in burning in the stomach and throat, bloody stools and vomiting. When it enters the body, it directly affects the kidneys and brain, and an overdose can lead to death.

  The ingestion of organic mercury can take years to produce noticeable physical symptoms. This type of mercury poisoning can include numbness or pain in certain parts of the body, tremors, blindness (or double vision), problems with memory, poor gross motor control (walking), and even seizures and death if enough organic mercury is consumed at one time. Treating mercury-related illnesses involve complex and sometimes lengthy medical procedures.

The Real Mercury Detox

• If you suspect that you have a mercury-related illness, your first step should be to call the National Poison Control Center hotline at 1-800-222-1222 and speak with an expert in mercury poisoning. Have on hand the following information: the patient's age, weight and mental state; the name of the product to which the patient was exposed; the time it was ingested, inhaled or touched; and the amount ingested, inhaled or touched.

  Removing elemental mercury from the body may involve giving the patient humidified oxygen or placing a breathing tube. The lungs may also have to be suctioned. The patient may also take oral medication that removes heavy metals from the body.

  Inorganic mercury poisoning first entails supportive care, e.g., giving the patient fluids through an IV and treating symptoms with medication. Treatment may involve using activated charcoal to soak up the mercury from the patient's stomach. Chelation therapy--medications that remove mercury from the tissues--may also be used in inorganic mercury poisoning, and are the standard treatment for those who experience organic mercury poisoning, as well.

  Minute levels of mercury in your body are inevitable, if you're exposed to a certain environment or diet. However, these are not always fatal. The best way to detox yourself from mercury is understanding what causes this heavy metal to be present in your body. The North Carolina Department of Environment & Natural Resources has provided an excellent website for those who wish to learn more (see Resources).