Say Anything Blog

The dangers of mercury in our environment has made the news in several ways with mercury in dental filings and mercury in seafood perhaps the most prominent. Less known, especially among young parents is the danger of mercury in childhood vaccines. From Autism: A Unique Type of Mercury Poisoning:

Autism is a syndrome characterized by impairments in social relatedness, language and communication, a need for routine and sameness, abnormal movements, and sensory dysfunction. Mercury (Hg) is a toxic metal that can exist as a pure element or in a variety of inorganic and organic forms and can cause immune, sensory, neurological, motor, and behavioral dysfunctions similar to traits defining or associated with autism. Thimerosal, a preservative frequently added to childhood vaccines, has become a major source of Hg in human infants and toddlers

The potential danger is further explained here:

Thimerosal, a preservative in vaccines that is 49 percent ethyl mercury, was a major source of mercury exposure from 1988 through 2002 when it was removed from childhood immunizations at the urging of the Public Health Service and the American Academy of Pediatrics

One should be aware that stocks of pre-2002 vaccines may still exist and to be sure to question medical personal about vaccine content before submitting to a vaccination. Those getting flu shots or any other type of vaccines should exercise the same precaution.

Some medical personnel may suggest that the mercury in vaccines is safe and within government standards. But is any amount of mercury safe?. Since mercury used to be used in various electrical switches because of its conductive characteristics, I was personally aware that even casual contact with mercury was to be avoided. From Even safe mercury levels harm brain

LEVELS of mercury currently regarded as safe for adults could impair brain function, according to a study in Brazil. The study has been dismissed as too small to be conclusive, but if it is right, mercury could be slightly reducing the mental performance of millions of people worldwide.

Low levels of mercury are already thought to damage the nervous systems of fetuses and babies. After a study in the Faroe Islands showed that children exposed to mercury in the womb have memory, attention and language problems at age seven, regulatory authorities in the US and UK advised pregnant and nursing mothers not to eat large predatory fish such as tuna, shark and king mackerel. Mercury and methyl mercury (a more toxic form generated by bacteria) are most concentrated in animals near the top of the food chain.

Can anything be done to reverse the affects of mercury?

From a previous article :

This impairment (autism) manifests as a severe imbalance in the ratio of active to inactive glutathione, the body's most important tool for detoxifying and excreting metals. Glutathione works as an antioxidant, keeping in check the potentially destructive process of oxidative stress caused both by normal metabolism and environmental contaminants. Autistic children showed a significant impairment in every one of five measurements of the body's ability to maintain a healthy glutathione defense.

Glutathione is one of the body's most important mechanism of heavy metal detoxification and excretion. Some metals—copper, chromium, iron and vanadium—directly provoke oxygen radical formation. Glutathione binds with these compounds as well as other metals—cadmium, lead, mercury, and nickel (Stohs 1995). The resulting, water-soluble chemical is more easily filtered out of the body.

Since the opportunity for mercury and other metal ingestion is so available in today's environment a daily supplement of glutathione might be advisable for all.