Part II: Are you tired and foggy and your doctor has no answers? Could it be heavy metal toxicity?

By Emil Haldey, PharmD

If you have read Part I, I am sure you would agree with me that we are all exposed to toxins, no matter how hard we try to stay clean, because we are surrounded by various types of toxins — much more so than two centuries ago. It’s true – not all of us feel the effects, and not all of us get sick – because we are all unique individuals with unique responses to the various types of stimuli that come from outside or inside our bodies.

- For those of us who really care about health and wellness and have no health-related complaints – awareness and education are key. Continuously detoxifying the body can be a helpful tool in maintaining health.

- For those who have some health issues, but they're not so bothersome, maybe now is the time to learn what’s causing them and take action.

- Many of us suffer from chronic ailments or symptoms without getting the help and relief we need – sometimes only managing to control symptoms with medication. This is called maintenance therapy, and that’s all it does – maintains the disease under control with medication. No cure! But what if heavy metal toxicity is the major root cause of those chronic conditions? With the right help, the condition(s) could be reversed.

You may have also realized that one of the hardest steps is finding a healthcare practitioner who can actually help you. Many scientists have researched this topic and written books, created educational websites, video recordings, podcasts, and treatment centers. Many non-medical and non-scientific people have also written books and created numerous informational venues to share their experiences and the knowledge they’ve acquired on their journey to health.

Apparently, that is not enough! There are too many of us who need help and too few who can provide it.

So, what do you think the next step should be?

I would say – learn if you are indeed heavy metal toxic, and if so, how much and which metal or metals!

This is easier said than done. Because chronic heavy metal toxicity – particularly with mercury – is not recognized by the conventional medical community and health officials as a real medical condition, there are no standard tests recommended to diagnose chronic mercury/heavy metal toxicity.

Among non-conventional practitioners, only an extremely small number are licensed healthcare practitioners, and there is no consensus on what and how to test for mercury/heavy metal toxicity.

Any good practitioner who specializes in integrative or functional medicine (which is a new and growing medical specialty) will start with a very comprehensive medical history to try and identify a potential source of heavy metal exposure, will conduct a thorough physical examination, and finally, will recommend specialized tests for heavy metals. But again, not all specialized tests for heavy metals are reliable, and not all practitioners know how to interpret them. That being said, here are the options listed in order of reliability (from best to least):

- Hair tissue mineral testing

- Urine testing after provocation – can be very dangerous if not done cautiously and only when needed.

- Toenail testing – used very rarely

- Blood testing – least reliable because in chronic exposure, the heavy metal is already stored deep in the tissues or bones, and is therefore not circulating in the blood.

All tests listed above can be recommended by practitioners – blood and urine tests require a licensed healthcare practitioner’s referral order.

A hair test does not always require a doctor’s order. There are laboratories that can analyze a hair tissue sample and some even provide the extra service of interpreting the results – without a doctor’s order.

If you have questions about how to test yourself for heavy metal toxicity, please contact us.

I will be sharing more information on this topic in the future.