Heavy metal poisoning is a major public health threat that deserves broader media attention, especially from healthcare practitioners.
In this article, we’ll introduce you to common sources of heavy metal exposure, strategies to minimize exposure, and how to safely remove heavy metals in the tissue and blood through a process called chelation.
The four most commonly encountered heavy metals that threaten human health are:
- Cadmium.
- Lead.
- Mercury.
- Arsenic.
Despite the media’s myopic focus on a single city’s issues with heavy metal contamination, Flint is only the tip of the proverbial iceberg.
In a 2016 report from the Scientific American, researchers concluded that thousands of US cities’ water supplies are riddled with a host of heavy metals, toxins from agricultural runoff, pharmaceutical drugs, and other harmful constituents.
In fact, the Scientific American team identified “3,000 areas with recently recorded lead poisoning rates at least double those in Flint during the peak of that city’s contamination crisis” from Pennsylvania to Texas.
Here in California, health advocacy groups have begun to track lead contamination in schools and other public institutions. Although California generally fares better in terms of lead contamination, several heavy-metal hotspots in SoCal have been identified:
Unfortunately, tap water isn’t the only common source of heavy metal poisoning that threatens Americans’ well-being.
Heavy Metal Sources in the OceanDue to a toxic combination of leaked radiation from the Japanese power plant in Fukoshima that melted down in 2011 and others like it, unchecked chemical dumping by industrial companies, and natural leeching from the Earth’s crust, the world’s oceans are filled with heavy metals – particularly mercury.
When we eat fish, we consume any mercury contained within the flesh along with the nutrients. The bioactive mercury passed through fish is called methylmercury. In small dosages that occur naturally, methylmercury does not pose a serious risk to healthy people. However, with regular over-consumption of fish (more than three times weekly) and poor choices of seafood, we often expose ourselves and our loved ones to dangerous concentrations of mercury.
The fish highest in methylmercury levels are typically larger, longer-lived species. Examples of mercury-ridden fish include:
- King mackerel.
- Swordfish.
- Ahi tuna.
- Bigeye tuna.
Other Sources of Heavy Metal ExposureTap water and fish are just two of the many sources of heavy metal poisoning that threaten our collective health. Other sources of heavy metal exposure include insecticides routinely used on crops, mercurial vaccine additives called “adjuvants,” cigarette smoke, and industrial manufacturing.
How to Detoxify Heavy Metals Through Chelation The term “chelation” in relation to heavy metal poisoning refers to several compounds’ ability to “capture” heavy metals from tissues where they are deposited in order to safely escort them out of the body via the urine or sweat. Etymologically, the term comes from the ancient Greek word “chelos” which means “claw.”
Chelation therapy involves the careful introduction of a combination of powerful chelating agents to slowly remove the heavy metals from the body. The key word is “careful” – removing heavy metals too suddenly can actually be detrimental to health by triggering a dramatic uptick in poisoning symptoms.
The most effective natural chelators are:
- Chlorella.
- Spirulina.
- Cilantro.
- Garlic.
- Glutathione.
- Zinc.
Of these, chlorella is the most potent chelation agent. It is often considered an “intelligent chelator” because it accomplishes both components of the chelation process — first, by prying heavy metals loose from tissues and, secondly, by binding to them for elimination.
If you would like to explore science-backed options for recovering your good health naturally through homeopathic remedies, give Oksana a call today. As she does with each of her patients, Oksana will gladly set up a 1-on-1 consolation to explore your treatment options together.