Many elements are considered nutrients and are essential for the proper functioning of the body. They are divided into macrominerals (calcium, magnesium, zinc, sodium) and trace minerals (boron, molybdenum, selenium, iodine). Conversely, there are a number of elements that are toxic to the human body and can interfere with its functioning and undermine health — these include mercury, lead, cadmium, aluminum, and arsenic. These toxic metals have no known physiological functions. They can be toxic to organ systems and may disrupt the balance of essential nutrients.
Essential elements play an important role in our overall health and well-being. These help mediate a number of biochemical processes such as metabolism and the transport of oxygen through the blood. They are considered essential because the body would break down and illness would occur without them. They:
- support cellular metabolism
- support the nervous system
- activate hormones
- facilitate replication and transcription of nucleic acids
- produce hemoglobin
- make neurotransmitters, and
- support antioxidant enzymes.
Essential elements are only conducive to optimal health when they are within optimal ranges. Imbalances, where levels are too high or too low, can have detrimental effects on health. Copper and zinc are essential micronutrients — they are needed in very small quantities in the diet, but are toxic at higher concentrations. Small amounts of zinc help ensure a proper immune response and healthy nervous system. Zinc also regulates the function of some genes, enables many proteins to carry out their vital roles, and helps speed the chemical reactions that keep us alive. On the flip side, an imbalance of zinc has been linked to Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, prostate cancer, and seizures. Copper, when out of balance, can lead to weak limbs, seizures, brittle hair, liver damage, kidney failure, coma, and death. Magnesium is an essential element with a significant role in cellular metabolism and protein synthesis, and its deficiency causes problems ranging from muscle weakness to cardiac arrhythmias.
Iodine and selenium are essential elements that can be either beneficial or toxic depending on their levels. Severe iodine deficiency and extreme excesses cause thyroid deficiency and goiter. The same is true for selenium. A severe deficiency impairs the enzymes necessary for anti-oxidant actions and thyroid activity that convert T4 to bioactive T3. In contrast, an excess of selenium can cause death.
Excessive bromine, in the same chemical family as iodine, competes with iodine in the thyroid. This becomes problematic when iodine levels are borderline low, or lower, and bromine is high. Lithium is important for brain health in trace amounts but is toxic when used in excessive amounts pharmacologically.
Heavy metals exist in our environment both naturally and from pollution. Arsenic, mercury, cadmium, and lead are toxic heavy metals with no known nutritional benefits in the human body. Common sources for high exposure to arsenic include soil, rocks, and water in or near hazardous waste sites. Cadmium is among the most toxic of all heavy metals. It is often found in cigarette smoke and is used in batteries, metal coatings, and plastics. Cadmium enters the environment through mining operations. Mercury is present in gold and silver mining operations and in seafood. Lead is responsible for the highest incidence of heavy metals overexposure, most commonly from exposure to lead dust inside a home when lead paint is scraped, sanded, or disturbed during home remodeling.
High levels of these heavy metals can damage proteins, lipids, and DNA, leading to decreased thyroid function, weight gain, infertility, diabetes, autoimmune conditions, dementia, and cancers. These toxic metals can also damage the liver, kidneys, brain, cardiovascular system, endocrine system, and nervous system. Symptoms of chronic heavy metal toxicity include headache, brain fog, weakness, muscle and joint pain, constipation, and chronic fatigue.
Lead, mercury, and cadmium are retained in the body; their toxic effects are cumulative and more pronounced with aging. Very little lead is excreted in urine, but it is readily taken up by red blood cells, where it forms a tight complex with hemoglobin. For this reason whole blood, and not serum or urine, is used to monitor exposure to lead. Arsenic is only measured in urine because it is rapidly cleared from the bloodstream after exposure, and would therefore only be detected in blood if testing was done immediately after exposure.
Toxic metals and essential element status can be assessed in urine, blood, feces, and hair. Because they are best tested for in different ways, there is no single test that gives the best measurements for all heavy metals. Testing provides an excellent assessment of overall body burden for these toxic elements and is also a good indicator of excessive or inadequate supplementation with nutritional essential elements.
Because heavy metals are all around us, it is normal for us to have some in our bodies. Whether heavy metals in your body are causing health problems is a different question, and must be further determined through testing, through an evaluation of your symptoms and medical history, and through a consideration of your lifestyle and work environment. If you are having unexplained chronic health symptoms and suspect possible nutritional imbalances or toxic heavy metal burdens, be in the know and get tested. We provide essential elements and heavy metal testing at TLC Pharmacy and can provide you with a comprehensive test results evaluation and assessment. Through detection and a thought-out comprehensive health plan, you can start to find your way back to health.
