More than 60 years ago, a group of people with strange diseases suddenly appeared. Their expressions were sluggish, their hands and feet were deformed, and when they were serious, they would even bend their bodies and scream loudly. What is even more strange is that it is not only people who are like this. A lot of cats also seem to have the same strange disease...
This kind of thing is very toxic, but we can't live without it In a family of 90, an elderly man in his 90s made a "home remedy" that is said to be able to cure skin diseases. After that, all three members of the family developed symptoms of poisoning such as coughing, chest tightness and vomiting, and were immediately sent to the hospital ICU receive treatment. The test results of the
hospital showed that the urine mercury content of the patients was much higher than the normal level. The urine mercury content of the elderly daughter is more than 160 times higher than the normal level!
More than ten days after receiving treatment such as mercury expelling, the old man's daughter recovered and was discharged from the hospital, and his son-in-law's condition gradually improved, but the old man died unfortunately because of his old age and deep poisoning.
Why did the "home remedies" for skin diseases put down three people? The reason for
is that the "home remedy" made by the old man contains mercury , but he did not pay attention to the protective measures during the refining process, so that the whole family inhaled a large amount of mercury and was poisoned. (News source: CCTV)
mentioned mercury, and I believe that there is such a concept in our hearts, that is: mercury is highly poisonous, and you need to be extra careful when dealing with mercury products.
However, in fact, many people do not put this sentence into action in their lives.
In addition to the poisoning caused by the absurd actions of the old man above, there have been reports of poisoning caused by the wrong use of mercury products such as thermometers. Smashed a thermometer and was sent to the hospital" and so on.
Screenshots of news reports of mercury poisoning
There are many other reports like this, which all show that mercury poisoning is really not as simple as we think.
What is the holy place of mercury?
Mercury, the scientific name for metallic mercury (Hg), is called mercury because it is like silver and water. In addition to mercury, mercury is also known as Bai Ran (gǒng), niece, Ran, lead essence, magic glue, Yuanshui, Liuzhu and so on.
Mercury (mercury) in nature, commonly found in places such as rocks, soil, plants, atmosphere and so on. Its existing forms are mainly elemental mercury (elemental mercury is unstable at high and low temperature, so it is less), inorganic mercury and organic mercury. Elemental mercury is liquid at room temperature and has a silvery-white metallic luster, but it is volatile when heated.
It is worth mentioning that any form of mercury is toxic , among which organic mercury is more toxic, and methyl mercury is the most powerful organic mercury.
Metal mercury source: Lingyu.com
Mercury poisoning , what kind of
Regarding the mechanism of mercury poisoning, the explanation given in the Dictionary of Traditional Chinese Medicine is: After mercury enters the human body, it is easy to interact with sulfhydryl (-SH, The combination of various proteins and enzymes consisting of a sulfur atom and a hydrogen atom with a negative monovalent atomic group results in the inactivation of dozens of enzymes in the human body, the disorder of membrane function, and the damage to a large number of cells. In addition to
, mercury also has a mutagenic effect, resulting in chromosome mutation and so on.
Simply put, when mercury enters the human body, it will combine with proteins and enzymes with specific structures in the body, making it inactive, causing various activities in the human body to lose their original functions. Generally, the lethal dose of mercury is about 0.1g.
Acute mercury poisoning and Chronic mercury poisoning :
A. Acute mercury poisoning: ingests high levels of mercury in a short period of time, and the clinical manifestations are mostly metallic taste in the mouth, gingivitis ("dental floss" in some patients), fever, abnormal breathing, nausea and vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, kidney disease functional failure, exfoliative dermatitis, etc.
However, in addition to knowing that they have been exposed to mercury, in many cases, the poisoner does not knowWhether you have been exposed to mercury, and the clinical manifestations of acute mercury poisoning are often atypical. Therefore, in clinical practice, acute mercury poisoning needs to be carefully distinguished from acute upper respiratory tract infections, allergies, and infectious diseases.
B. Chronic mercury poisoning: The toxicity of mercury is cumulative, and it often takes years or even decades to slowly manifest itself. This situation is mainly related to occupations. The clinical manifestations of
are mostly neuropsychiatric disorders, tremors of the tongue, eyelids, fingers (commonly known as: three tremors), gingivitis, proteinuria, and toxic encephalopathy may occur in severe cases.
Mercury Poisoning Caused by Occupational Disease Source: China Youth Network
In daily life, people always keep away from danger subconsciously, so in fact acute mercury poisoning is not common, but because of long-term and widespread mercury pollution, chronic Mercury poisoning is getting closer to us.
Mercury, not just "poison comes from the mouth"
If, until now, there are still people who still have the concept of mercury poisoning at the level of novels, thinking that closing their mouths can bring peace of mind, then the editor can only say: Please come back to reality!
Mercury poisoning is by no means the only way to "enter through the mouth". The case at the beginning of the article is because mercury volatilizes into gas when heated and enters from the respiratory system.
A. Entering through the digestive system means ingesting it. As mentioned above, mercury can enter the food chain in various ways such as polluted water sources, absorption by plants, and ingestion by animals. The final result can be imagined. After all, humans The creatures at the top of the food chain.
Mercury enters from the digestive tract Source: "Global Mercury Pollution and Its Prevention and Control"
B. Entering from the respiratory tract means that metal mercury or mercury-containing compounds are inhaled into the human body in a gaseous form. This is the main way for mercury to enter the human body. The most common one is occupational mercury poisoning, such as those engaged in mineral mining, amalgam smelting, and instrument manufacturing.
C. From the skin into the , the most common is the long-term use of mercury-containing cosmetics. Because of the insecticidal effect of mercury, some topical medicines also contain mercury, and you should be extra careful when using it. Long-term or large-scale use can also lead to mercury poisoning.
The unavoidable mercury poisoning
said so much before, there must be some readers who have doubts, since mercury is so toxic and harmful, wouldn’t it be better if we completely abandon it and not use it in our life and production? In fact, it is not, because mercury is really inseparable from our life and production operations.
The application of mercury and its compounds has been involved in all aspects of our daily life.
A. In terms of electronic equipment, from small thermometers, mercury salt dry batteries, batteries, automatic electric switches, ultraviolet lamps, mercury lamps, fluorescent lamps, etc., to large aircraft and ship navigation gyrators, automatic controllers for traffic signals, etc., there are mercury application. Mercury products around
Source: China Building Materials Network
B. In the chemical industry, mercury can be used as an electrode to electrolyze salt; mercury can be used instead of water as a heating medium or thermostat; mercury-containing compounds can also be used as pigments, anti-corrosion coatings, explosives, fireworks, etc.; in agriculture, there are also mercury-containing insecticides agents, seed sterilizers, etc.
C. In metallurgy and foundry industry, mercury can be used to extract precious non-ferrous metals such as gold and silver; it can also be used to extract thallium from aluminum smelting smoke; it can also be used to synthesize various alloys with bismuth, lead, aluminum, cadmium, etc. Molds, bearings, etc. for making precision instruments.
D. In terms of medicine, in Western medicine, the most common metal mercury is used to make thermometers and sphygmomanometers. Next, amalgam can be used as a dental material. Calomel was once used as a laxative for children (currently, it is also used as a laxative for children such as lactulose and hemp seed pills). and other drugs), red mercury was once a commonly used external disinfectant (now gradually replaced by iodophor, alcohol, hydrogen peroxide and other disinfectants); in traditional Chinese medicine, mercury is often used as a topical drug for insecticide, poisoning, rot.
Of course, as a medical treatment, there are clear points to pay attention to: is highly poisonous and cannot be taken orally, and it is forbidden for pregnant women. external use should not be used for a long time or the dosage is too large, especially if the wound is ulcerated, so as to avoid poisoning through skin absorption.
If you look at the above aspects, you still think that mercury poisoning is a little far away from us, then,What I am going to say below is closely related to each of us.
The unavoidable mercury
We mentioned earlier that mercury is a liquid at room temperature, and it is easily volatilized into the atmosphere when heated, and the atmosphere is fluid. Mercury is also water-soluble and easy to settle in the soil. . So this shows that in the environment we live in, every sip of air we breathe, every sip of water we drink, and every piece of land we step on, actually contains trace amounts of mercury .
is just because it is far lower than the dose that is harmful to the human body, so there is no visible harm to our body.
However, it is often when we have become accustomed to ignoring these material problems that we rely on for survival, but do not know that some dangers that we have almost forgotten have come quietly.
A. Air pollution: Because of the rapid development of industry, coal burning has become the world's largest source of anthropogenic mercury emissions, accounting for 70% of the total anthropogenic mercury emissions. Take the thermometer we are most familiar with, the mercury content of a most common thermometer is about 1g.
assumes that all the mercury in a thermometer is volatilized into the air, then the mercury content in a closed 50 cubic meter room will reach about 22 mg per cubic meter, which is far greater than the limit of human poisoning. Unlike confined spaces, mercury in the atmosphere can easily dissolve into water or sink into the soil during atmospheric circulation, causing water and soil pollution.
B. Water pollution: water pollution mainly comes from the mercury deposited in the atmosphere, the mercury in the soil that flows into the rivers, lakes and the sea through various water currents, and the mercury in the industrial wastewater. Among them, the discharge of industrial wastewater such as minerals, chemicals, pigments, fertilizers, and pesticides is the main cause of water pollution in my country.
The human body may cause mercury poisoning by drinking polluted water, or eating plants irrigated by polluted water, or organisms living in polluted water, such as Japan's Minamata disease . (see appendix)
C. Soil pollution: In addition to mercury deposited in the atmosphere, mercury in soil includes mercury contained in fertilizers and pesticides in agriculture, as well as mercury in specific industrial sewage. Incorrect disposal of mercury in mercury-containing wastes is a cause of soil pollution.
Mercury in the soil may re-enter the atmosphere and water for circulation, or sink into the soil and be directly or indirectly ingested by other animals and plants, thus becoming a major hidden danger to human health.
From the above, we can see that air pollution, water pollution, and soil pollution affect each other. Even if we leave a way out for ourselves, we must protect the surrounding environment as much as possible in our daily life. Even if it's just putting a discarded battery in the right trash can.
If we still think that mercury pollution in the atmosphere, water and soil is too far away from our lives, then we might as well look around us.
In addition to the broken thermometer mentioned above, there are also discarded lighting lamps, indoor fluorescent lamps, outdoor high-pressure mercury lamps, neon lamps, etc.; for example, silver amalgam used to fill caries dental amalgam .
Scottish researchers surveyed 180 dentists and found that their urine and nails had four times more mercury than normal people, and the steam from amalgam fillings was also easy for patients and doctors. cause harm.
However, because the safety of amalgam has always been controversial, some countries have begun to gradually prohibit the use of amalgam as a filling material for dental caries, and began to be replaced by other materials such as resin materials; now unqualified cosmetics may be The pain in the hearts of many beauty lovers, mercury-containing cosmetics can bleach and freckle the skin, so many whitening and freckle-removing cosmetics contain mercury.
But because of its toxicity, the state stipulates that the mercury content in cosmetics should not exceed 1mg/kg. However, many brands of cosmetics in will secretly increase the amount of mercury on the premise of knowing the harm of mercury. Among them, there are some well-known big brands, which is really nerve-racking.
Some people may feel panic when they see this. After all, mercury can harm our health in small doses, but it can enter our body through various ways.
However, as mentioned earlier, after eliminating the increase in mercury levels caused by human factors, in a clean and hygienic environment,Mercury levels are very, very low and do not have any effect on human health, so there is no need for the general public to panic.
Anti-micro and gradually, how can we avoid mercury poisoning in our daily life?
(1) First, protect the environment! protect environment! protect environment! (important things to say three times) This should be the most important measure to prevent mercury poisoning.
In addition to the need for the government to vigorously control pollution sources and take active measures to polluted rivers and soils (adding lime and other substances, changing the form of mercury or using active and inert materials to bind ionic mercury), we should also recognize To the correct way to protect the environment, such as garbage classification, try to choose mercury-free products and so on.
(2) Mercury-containing products should be carefully used , and mercury-containing products should be placed in special locations as much as possible to prevent inadvertent damage without knowing it.
Once you find broken mercury products in the room, you should cover your mouth and nose, open doors and windows, wear masks, gloves, etc., stick the mercury with cotton swabs, and place them in an airtight container. Containers to collect mercury, seek medical attention promptly. (3) Employees in occupations that come into contact with mercury, such as mining factories, pesticide factories, chemical fertilizer factories, light bulb factories, medical equipment factories, etc., should do their best to protect themselves and conduct regular inspections. If any unit disregards the health of its employees, everyone should report it to the higher-level unit in a timely manner and strive for their reasonable and legitimate rights and interests.
(4) When using mercury-containing drugs, be careful and avoid long-term or large-dose use to prevent mercury from being absorbed through skin wounds and deposited in the body, causing poisoning.
Attached: A typical mercury poisoning event
1) Minamata disease in Japan
This may be the most famous collective mercury poisoning event so far. The
event took place between 1953 and 1960 on the coast of Minamata Bay in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. On the southern east coast of Shiranui Sea, patients with central nervous system disorders of unknown cause appeared. poisoned patients showed slurred speech, sluggish expression, sensory disturbances, deformed hands and feet, staggered gait, etc. In severe cases, they became mentally disturbed, bowed their bodies, and shouted loudly. even death. The co-occurred with a large number of cats with symptoms very similar to human poisoning.
's investigation found that these people and cats all ate fish floating on the sea and developed similar symptoms of poisoning. It was not until July 1959 that it became clear that the poisoning was caused by the accumulation of methylmercury in planktonic fish.
Minamata disease Source: Sohu.com
2) Mercury pollution incident in Venezuela
This incident occurred between 1974 and 1975 in Venezuela, facing the Moro factory area in the Bohai Sea of Gali. In the incident, 16 people died and 200 people became ill. The poisoned patients all showed symptoms such as epilepsy, neurological disorders, gingivitis, gastroenteritis, and anemia.
was later investigated by academics organized by the University of Grabo, located very close to the incident. After the investigation, Professor Mao Nage and other professors judged the incident as inorganic mercury poisoning caused by salvage and consumption of inorganic mercury in the industrial wastewater discharged from the caustic soda factory, which entered the body of aquatic organisms such as fish and shrimp.
3) Mercury pollution incident in Canada
In 1970, mercury pollution also appeared in Canada. As a result, excessive mercury was also detected in fish and shrimp in the river. Not to mention mercury pollution in the atmosphere and soil, just water pollution has brought great harm to human life.
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Source of this issue
[1]Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Dictionary of Traditional Chinese Medicine[M].Shanghai: Shanghai Science and Technology Press.2005.12.
[2]Jin Yongqing. Evaluation--The Mausoleum of Qin Shihuang and a battery factory in Xining [D]. Shaanxi: Shaanxi Normal University .2007.05.
[3] Xu Yan. Research on the Compensation Index System of Environmental Mercury Pollution Health Damage [D]. Beijing: China Disease Prevention Control Center .2012.
[4] Zhang Yili, Liu Weiwei, Liu Qiang. Analysis and research on the effect of mercury poisoning on the body in different ways[J].Industrial Hygiene and Emergency Rescue.2015,33(4):234-237.
[5]J.O.Bockris.Global mercury pollution and its prevention and control[J].45-47.
[6]Harada Masaru.World mercury environment Pollution Incident[J].45-48.
[7]Zhu Sheng.History of Mercury in my country[J].64-69.
[8]Zhao Kuanghua.Evolution and development of ancient my country's "pumping sand to make mercury" Its chemical achievements [J].1984, 3(1): 11-23
The editorial team of this issue
main draft : unnamed; reviewer: Xiaoyuanyuan; proofreading : jokes; title map : Bobo; typesetting : the typesetting team that eats not fat
