The Effects of Heavy Metals & Radiation

updated 05/12/2008

Many of the products we use have heavy metals in them. Heavy metals are in the foods we eat, water we drink, and the air we breathe. We need very little of only a few heavy metals including zinc, copper, cobalt, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium and strontium. These good heavy metals become toxic to us when the quantity is too high and it takes really very little to be too much. On top of that, we take in more than twenty heavy metals which are non-essential for our healthy functioning.

How do they get into the body? Heavy metals enter your body through drinking, eating, inhaling, and skin and eye contact. Once in the body they do damage on the cellular level by causing dangerous free radicals production. The damage that they do is on the cellular level, and can cause cancer and many other diseases.

Four of the heavy metals that we focus on cause damage to the intestinal tract. They are mercury, aluminum, lead and cadmium. While aluminum isn't truly a heavy metal, it's still an extremely poisonous substance that can accumulate in the body's tissues. And, the number one most toxic heavy metal is arsenic.

Mercury Toxins

The Mercury Testing Kit

Mercury is present in organic and inorganic form and both are highly toxic and can seriously damage the colon. Inorganic mercury can be found in various products from thermometers to dental fillings to skin-tightening creams and much more.

Inorganic mercury is most commonly inhaled into the body. Contamination from the organic mercury is generally by eating it. Sometimes organic mercury is detectable in produce, livestock, processed grains and dairy products. Usually, though, it's found in fish and other water animals. Below is a list of fish organized by their reported mercury concentration.

Organic Mercury Concentration in Commercial Fish

Inorganic mercury is considered more toxic than organic because of its very corrosive traits. It can't be absorbed readily by the intestinal tract.

Organic mercury causes a more profound threat for two reasons. First, unlike inorganic, this one can be quickly absorbed by the intestine. Second, certain forms of this mercury, once in the body can convert itself to inorganic mercury which further increases toxicity and potential damage to the colon.

If you're wondering why use mercury amalgam fillings for cavities, you're not alone in this. Once in place in your mouth, they are not inactive. In fact they continue to emit vapors as you eat. There is no good use and therefore no safe amount of mercury to be in your body.

Aluminum Toxins

The Aluminum Testing Kit

This is not a heavy metal but Dr. Group has included it because it's so dangerous and is so prevalent in the environment. Like the metals in this article, a very small amount of aluminum is toxic to the human body.

It's present in many places that you would expect and many that you would not. Sure, we know that aluminum is present in foil, cans and cookware. But did you know that it's found in antacids, anti-diarrhea medication, nasal spray and processed cheese. Things as innocuous as antiperspirants and buffered aspirin contain aluminum and they are not so readily eliminated from daily use not by our on-the-go culture. A few of the products that can include aluminum in their formula are listed below.

Some of these are replaceable with minimal effort and it's really worth it to just do it. But before you get to that, you need to know that it doesn't end with us. Acid rain plays a part by increasing the levels of aluminum compounds in the earth and as a result has increased the levels in both fresh and salt water.

Aluminum enters your body in several ways. You can drink it along with your favorite soda. It's absorbed through the intestinal tract or the lungs and can end up in other bodily tissues. Neurological diseases like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and many others are now being studied in relation to excess aluminum in the brain tissue. Antacids containing aluminum hydroxide can disrupt healthy bowel functions by causing stress to the digestive system.

For now the FDA is continuing to restrict some natural health supplements but they approve literally thousands of products for sale that are established as toxic.

Lead Toxins

The Lead Testing Kit

Lead is a very hazardous substance according to several sources and it's presence in many products today is just a lack of concern for consumers. Contaminated drinking water, old homes, and tobacco smoke can contain dangerous amounts of lead. Smokers and those exposed to secondhand smoke can get poisoned by lead.

Lead enters the body by ingesting or inhaling. The majority of lead inhaled goes directly into the bloodstream and from there into the bones mostly and some into the soft tissues and organs. When ingested, the process starts in the stomach. The lead then travels to the intestinal lining and from there it's absorbed into the bloodstream. From that point it travels to different organs.

Symptoms of lead poisoning include constipation. In children the lead toxicity can lead to lower intellectual abilities. Some places you may find lead are in the chart below.

Cadmium Toxin

The Cadmium Testing Kit

Cadmium is the pigment metal least known for the danger it presents, as are the other heavy metals. Like other heavy metals, it's extremely toxic in small amounts. It’s slow to expel from the body and so it can build up over time in the intestine causing intestinal damage and digestive problems. Cadmium is a dangerous ingredient in cigarettes so smokers and secondhand smokers are at risk. Cadmium expelled from factories into the air, lands on the crops and animals that we may eat.

Even some teas and coffees contain cadmium. Consuming foods and liquids contaminated with cadmium, over time, can lead to severe intestinal problems and even colon cancer. Review the chart below for more places where you might find cadmium.

Foods That May Contain Cadmium

How Can I Protect Myself from Toxic Heavy Metals?

Your colon had a formidable task to daily deal with all the foods and drinks which much be digested. It has even more work when you consider the toxins that enter the body along with your meals and breathing and other dangers you might bump into. To help your body, you need to make the active effort to avoid heavy metal exposure. Another thing you can do is to detoxify your body. Following are recommendations for cleansing toxins from your body and intestinal tract.

• Heavy metals tests can be done by many chiropractors or natural healthcare practitioners using hair, blood or urine analysis.
• Far Infrared Therapy (FIR), or heat therapy, dissolves toxins in the blood and then you sweat them out. FIR therapy can cost as much as $3000.00, but it’s worth it as an aid in getting toxins out of the blood through the skin which itself is the largest detoxifying organ you have. Dr. Group recommends the brand TheraSauna™
• Remove your dental mercury amalgams immediately. Be sure to find a biological dentist who knows how to remove mercury fillings.
• Ion foot baths is a detoxifying treatment. It works by delivering an electric current into the body through the feet. Charged ions attach to heavy metal toxins and neutralize them. The metals are then pulled out of the body through your feet as you soak them.
• Eliminate exposure to aluminum in all products as much as you can, including antiperspirants, cookware and utensils. Try not to purchase food or drink in aluminum cans.
• Try Dr. Group's 6-Day Advanced Oxygen colon cleanse to help remove toxins from your body and perform three consecutive Liver & Gallbladder Cleanse.
• Watch what you eat. Pay attention to where your seafood comes from.
• Avoid vaccinations for things that are no longer common. Avoid flu shots as they contain dangerous toxins and don't work very well.
• Other resources are presented in "Cookware," "Heavy Metals" and "Ion Foot Baths."

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