Heavy metals are natural components of the Earth's crust. However to the body, they are poisonous substances even in very small quantities, which enter our food and water supply by industrial and consumer waste, or even from acidic rain breaking down soils and releasing heavy metals into streams, lakes, rivers, and groundwater. Heavy meals are also added (yes, unfortunately you read correctly - they are added!) to medicines as well as thousands of different food products, household products, personal products and untold numbers of industrial products and chemicals.
Toxic heavy metals cannot be degraded or destroyed and are dangerous because they tend to bioaccumulate. Bioaccumulation means an increase in the concentration of a chemical in the body over time, compared to the chemical's concentration in the environment. Heavy metals accumulate in living organisms whenever they enter the body (of humans and/or animals). They are immediately absorbed and due to their high toxic potential are quickly and deeply stored away in tissues such as the brain, liver, kidneys and bones to prevent immediate harm as they are not easily broken down, metabolized or excreted by the body.
The problem being that due to their inability to be easily metabolized and excreted they tend to accumulate further and further causing metabolic disruptions which can lead to infertility, poor sperm parameters and miscarriages, but they have also been linked to malformation and abnormalities in the foetus as well as developmental concerns including autism in children whose parents (particularly the mother had high heavy metal loads during pregnancy). Researchers believe a lot of the damage caused to developing babies and children due to heavy metals exposure begins and happens whilst in utero, in addition to some links to certain vaccines which are preserved with mercury and may contain other heavy metals as well as polluted fish, water and other environmental exposure.
Arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury, aluminum, and uranium are highly toxic and every care should be taken to avoid them. Barium, lithium, nickel (one of the alloys in stainless steel) and strontium are also toxic and are certainly best avoided.
How Do Heavy Metals Interfere With Health And Fertility?
Generally speaking, heavy metals disrupt metabolic function in two basic ways:
1. First, they accumulate and thereby disrupt function in vital organs and glands such as the heart, brain, kidneys, bone, liver, etc.
2. Second, they displace vital nutritional minerals from where they should be in the body to provide biological function. For example, enzymes are catalysts for virtually every biochemical reaction in all life-sustaining processes of metabolism. But instead of calcium being present in an enzyme reaction, lead or cadmium may be there in its place. Toxic metals can't fulfill the same role as the nutritional minerals, thus their presence becomes critically disruptive to enzyme activity.
Because their impact is at such a foundational level, heavy metals can be causal factors in literally any health problem.
Testing for Heavy metals in the body
Heavy metal testing and toxicity is a very complex issue. This can often increase the length of your preconception preparation by many months. Most people will have heavy metals in storages within their bodies and although it is important to address those levels at some time and have a 'clean up' for the sake of your own general health (and maybe even your fertility and the health of your prospective child), some couples choose to leave the whole issue of heavy metals alone. Some experts argue that if heavy metals are deep in storage, then it if fine just to leave them there and they will no cause a problem. Others strongly oppose this view. However they all agree that if you do decide to do something about it (i.e. undergo chelation treatment) you must not attempt conception for at least 4 months after the treatment has finished.
You now know the impact of heavy metals on health and ultimately only you can make the final decision, however here's what I know and recommend to my patients: If a couple has been trying to conceive for more than one year without success despite there being no other reason for infertility and/or has had multiple miscarriages, my recommendation is for testing and if we do find heavy metals, I will recommend chelation therapy as a part of natural fertility treatment - unless a woman is over the age of 40.
It is now well established that many childhood illnesses and even developmental problems have their beginning in utero through the effects of heavy metals on metabolic processes. Dr Kenneth Bock's book "Healing the New Childhood Epidemics: Autism, ADHD, Asthma, and Allergies: The Groundbreaking Program for the 4-A Disorders" is a good resource for understanding the importance of preconception preparation from another perspective.
There are a few different ways of testing for heavy metals, and although you can buy inexpensive urine test kits online, these are only semi-accurate if a person has very high levels of heavy metals in the body and their metabolic excretion rate is high, which is seldom the case - remember how we discussed previously that heavy metals are quite unwilling to be easily excreted? Well, this is why 'unchallenged' urine tests are not all that useful for diagnosing heavy metal levels and toxicity.
For best results be sure to seek professional advice from a practitioner who understands and specializes in the treatment of heavy metal toxicity for an opinion on your unique circumstance.
Copyright (c) 2009 Gabriela Rosa and Natural Fertility & Health Solutions P/L.
Leading Sydney-based natural fertility specialist, researcher and author Gabriela Rosa is devoted to helping bring healthy babies into the world and empower individuals through better health. Boost your natural fertility, get pregnant fast, increase the odds of IVF, prevent miscarriages and take home a healthier baby - click here for FREE fertility advice and your FREE Natural Fertility Booster ezine subscription.
