The biological half-life of mercury is estimated to be approximately 30 to 60 days in the body [4]. The half-life of mercury in the brain is not entirely clear, but is estimated to be as long as approximately 20 years.
Many studies show that high exposure to mercury induces changes in the central nervous system, potentially resulting in irritability, fatigue, behavioral changes, tremors, headaches, hearing and cognitive loss, dysarthria, incoordination, hallucinations, and death.
Broad neurological symptoms
This can include trouble thinking or processing thoughts, as well as sudden memory problems. The effect on the nervous system can also inhibit the senses, leading to: Sudden vision changes (particularly a loss of peripheral vision) Impaired speech and hearing.
More severe cases of mercury exposure lead to a poor prognosis. Elemental mercury, if inhaled, can cause permanent lung damage and potential brain damage. Inorganic mercury can damage kidneys and cause blood loss.
Mad hatter's disease is caused by chronic mercury poisoning. It is characterized by emotional, mental, and behavioral changes, among other symptoms. A doctor may describe the neurological changes as erethism or mercurial erethism.
Once inorganic mercury enters the body and gets into the bloodstream, it moves to many different tissues. Inorganic mercury leaves your body in the urine or feces over a period of several weeks or months.
Chronic brain damage from organic mercury poisoning is difficult to treat. Some people never recover, but there has been some success in people who receive chelation treatment.
Dietary fiber: Various foods rich in fiber, such as fruit and grains with bran, may help remove heavy metals. Researchers have found fiber to reduce mercury levels in the brain and blood.
Long-term exposure to high levels of methylmercury causes effects primarily on the nervous system. Symptoms of long-term high level methylmercury exposure include disturbances in vision, hearing and speech, as well as tingling and numbness in fingers and toes, lack of coordination and muscle weakness.
Common symptoms of poisoning from these metals may include gastrointestinal, renal, and neurological symptoms, such as headaches, irritability, psychosis, stupor, coma, and convulsions.
D-penicillamine (Depen, Cuprimine)
D-penicillamine is an oral, thiol-based chelator for acute or chronic toxicity. It is less well tolerated than DMSA (succimer). D-penicillamine forms a complex with mercury and is excreted in urine; therefore, do not use it in renal failure.
The brains of children who have died as a result of mercury poisoning show neuron loss in the cerebellum and throughout the cerebral cortex. Mercury also appears to affect brain development by preventing neurons from finding their appropriate place in the brain.
Magnesium can remove a variety of toxins and heavy metals from your body including aluminum, mercury, and lead. While it's likely that these chemicals will only be present in your body in minute traces, even the tiniest amounts of these can be harmful. As such, flushing them out of your cells is important.
Fruits and vegetables high in vitamin C can reduce the damage caused by heavy metal toxins by acting as an antioxidant. Vitamin C helps convert toxins into a water-soluble form that may be eliminated easily from the body.
Chelation is central to natural detoxification of heavy metals, via formation of complexes, particularly with glutathione and other small molecules, and their excretion [20].
To successfully detox from heavy metals like mercury, you should increase your intake of vitamin C foods, green leafy vegetables and cilantro. Cilantro is actually one of the best herb choices when it comes to heavy metal detox. Chelation therapy is another option when it comes to heavy metal detox.
Health effects of mercury exposure
The inhalation of mercury vapour can produce harmful effects on the nervous, digestive and immune systems, lungs and kidneys, and may be fatal. The inorganic salts of mercury are corrosive to the skin, eyes and gastrointestinal tract, and may induce kidney toxicity if ingested.
Mercury persists in the environment for long periods by cycling back and forth between the air and soil, all the while changing chemical forms. Atmospheric lifetimes of inorganic elemental mercury are estimated to be up to two years, while organic methylmercury may stay in the soils for decades.
So, depending on the amount of contamination and the condition of your body, it can take months, sometimes up to a year and a half, to finally get rid of all the toxins and heavy metals. Heavy metals and waste products are excreted by organs such as the liver, spleen, lymph, kidney and intestine.
High exposure to inorganic mercury may result in damage to the gastrointestinal tract, the nervous system, and the kidneys. Both inorganic and organic mercury are absorbed through the gastrointestinal tract and affect other systems through this route.
Mercury may affect the nervous system, leading to neurological symptoms such as: nervousness or anxiety. irritability or mood changes. numbness.
Furthermore, lead and mercury induce glial cell reactivity, a hallmark of brain inflammation.