Mercury Exposure via Dr. Hyman

To read Dr. Hyman’s whole article, click this link. 10 Truths and Tips about Mercury Toxicity (via Dr. Hyman) 1) Industrial exposure to mercury is significant and mostly comes from coal burning (220 million pounds a year) and chlor-alkali plants. 2) The main ways that humans are exposed to mercury are from contaminated fish and dental amalgams or silver fillings. 3) Mercury can affect nearly all your organs, especially the brain, heart, kidneys, and gut. 4) Many chronic diseases may be caused or worsened by mercury, including neurologic disease, ADHD, autism, heart disease, autoimmune diseases, and more. 5) Some of us are genetically better adapted to detoxify mercury than others, leading to variable effects within the population. 6) You should reduce your exposure by avoiding large ocean fish (like tuna, swordfish, shark, and tilefish) and river fish. Eat only small wild fish. If it fits in your pan, it is probably okay. 7) Blood tests are relatively worthless for analyzing mercury toxicity, unless you have had a significant recent exposure or eat a lot of sushi or tuna. 8) Hair tests only check for mercury from fish, not from fillings so they only give you a partial picture. 9) The only way to find out your total body load of mercury is to take a medication with sulfur molecules that binds to the mercury like fly paper. This is called DMSA or DMPS. This test should ONLY be done by a trained physician and involves taking one dose of this medicine, followed by a 6- or 24-hour urine collection to see how much comes out. (In my opinion, the most reliable testing is done by Doctorsdata.com). 10) If you are toxic and sick, you may consider addressing your dental health by seeing a biological dentist who can safely help you deal with mercury in your mouth. via Mercury: Get This Heavy-Metal Poison Out of Your Body – Dr. Mark Hyman.   For my fellow SIBO sufferers: If you who have rotten-egg smelling gas after eating foods such as eggs or broccoli, check out this article.  You may have mercury toxicity that is exacerbated by eating “sulfur foods”.