Why You Need To Identify and Treat Heavy Metal Toxicities
by Dr Brownstein
Heavy metal toxicity is, unfortunately, alive and well in our modern world. An article in the Tribune News Service (July 6, 2015) reported that any exposure to lead, even as a toddler or in the womb, could lead to a host of permanent neurological problems. These problems include headaches, a lowered IQ and a propensity for violence. The article detailed how ubiquitous lead exposure is and how it continues to cause harm today. Lead exposure can occur from old leaded paint and deposits from old vehicle emissions (e.g., leaded gasoline).
For nearly 20 years, I have been checking my patients for heavy metal levels. Unfortunately, lead and mercury toxicities occur in the vast majority of my patients—over 80%. Once a heavy metal toxicity is identified, a detoxification program can be initiated.
It is important to have your heavy metal levels analyzed. Unfortunately, in our toxic world, high levels of heavy metals is the norm. What are the consequences of having high levels of mercury, lead or another heavy metal? As I mentioned before, heavy metal toxicity can lead to a host of neurological problems including dementia, brain fog, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s disease.
The human body does not like heavy metals ‘floating’ around in the serum. Therefore, it tightly binds them up primarily in fat tissue. However, if a person with high heavy metal levels loses a significant amount of weight, especially in the fatty areas of the body, they can release a toxic load of heavy metals into the serum. Unfortunately, neurological tissue can also bind heavy metals. If the fat tissues or there is not enough fat to bind heavy metals, neurologic tissue will store the metals. Studies have shown that small amounts of mercury can destroy nerve fibers.
What can you do? The first step is to work with a health care practitioner who is knowledgeable about heavy metals. The practitioner should know how to test for and how to treat heavy metal toxicity. I can guarantee you that nearly all physicians neither have the knowledge nor the training to do this. I suggest finding a holistic health care practitioner who does have the appropriate education to identify and treat heavy metal toxicity.
I routinely test my patients for heavy metal toxicities using hair, urine and serum testing. Furthermore, I find chelation challenge tests invaluable to identifying a heavy metal excess. A simple blood test will not suffice as I mentioned previously that the body does not like heavy metals ‘floating’ around in the blood stream. A chelation challenge test is performed by injecting or ingesting a chelating substance such as EDTA, DMPS, or DMSA, and then collecting urine for a few hours afterwards. The chelating substances will bind metals in the body and deposit them in the urine.
If you are not feeling well, find a health care practitioner who can test and treat you for heavy metal toxicity. Once you identify which heavy metal is present, you can institute a targeted detoxification plan. Ensuring that the liver detoxification pathways are optimally functioning can aid any detoxification plan. My partners and I have designed a product, Total Liver Care (TLC) by PureZen Health to help supply the body with the correct raw materials to enhance the detoxification pathways. Also, taking supplemental vitamin C and alpha lipoic acid helps any detoxification plan. It is important to drink enough water in order to help the body flush out toxins. Finally, eat healthy food free of toxic pesticides, insecticides and synthetic hormones.
Remember, you don’t have to suffer with feeling poorly. Identifying and treating heavy metal toxicities can help you take charge of your health care and allow your body to properly detoxify.
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