Mercury in vaccines
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Vaccines: Childhood Vaccinations: Mercury in Vaccines, Thimerosal Controversy, Possible Links to Autism in Children
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Mercury Poisoning
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Definition
Methylmercury poisoning is brain and nervous system damage from the chemical methylmercury.

Alternative Names
Minamata Bay disease; Basra poison grain poisoning

Causes, incidence, and risk factors
Methylmercury is a type of mercury ("quicksilver"), a metal that is liquid at room temperature. Most compounds containing mercury are poisonous. Methylmercury has been used to preserve seed grain, which is fed to animals. Methylmercury may also form in water when other forms of mercury in the water react with certain bacteria. Methylmercury poisoning has occurred after people have eaten meat from animals fed seed grain or fish from waters contaminated with methylmercury (such as Minamata Bay in Japan).

Unborn babies and young infants are very sensitive to methylmercury's effects. Methylmercury causes central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) damage. How bad the damage is depends on how much poison gets into the body. Many of the symptoms of mercury poisoning are similar to those seen in cerebral palsy. In fact, methylmercury is thought to cause a form of cerebral palsy.

Mercury in fish and shellfish
EXCERPT:
What You Need to Know About Mercury in Fish and Shellfish Allergies
Women Who Might Become Pregnant
Women Who are Pregnant
Nursing Mothers
Young Children
PLEASE NOTE: This advice is not just pertinent to Florida, but World Wide and are just sensible guidelines for the categories above and may also include shellfish.


Mercury in fish
EXCERPT:
By following these three recommendations for selecting and eating fish or shellfish, women and young children will receive the benefits of eating fish and shellfish and be confident that they have reduced their exposure to the harmful effects of mercury.

1.Do not eat Shark, Swordfish, King Mackerel, or Tilefish because they contain high levels of mercury.
2.Eat up to 12 ounces (2 average meals) a week of a variety of fish and shellfish that are lower in mercury.
Five of the most commonly eaten fish that are low in mercury are shrimp, canned light tuna, salmon, pollock, and catfish.
Another commonly eaten fish, albacore ("white") tuna has more mercury than canned light tuna. So, when choosing your two meals of fish and shellfish, you may eat up to 6 ounces (one average meal) of albacore tuna per week.
3.Check local advisories about the safety of fish caught by family and friends in your local lakes, rivers, and coastal areas. If no advice is available, eat up to 6 ounces (one average meal) per week of fish you catch from local waters, but don't consume any other fish during that week.
Follow these same recommendations when feeding fish and shellfish to your young child, but serve smaller portions.

Fluoride
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FLUORIDE ACTION NETWORK:
FLUORIDE HEALTH EFFECTS DATABASE:
Overview Page
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DIRECTORY: FAN > Health
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Researched & Maintained by: Michael Connett, FAN
UPDATED: May 5, 2008 Database Site Map
Glossary
Bibliography
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Attention MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS: Please take a moment today and sign the Professionals' Statement to End Fluoridation. To read the Professionals' Statement, click here.

Fluoride and Kidneys
EXCERPT:
HEALTH EFFECTS: Fluoride & the Kidneys
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DIRECTORY: FAN > Health > Kidneys
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Summation - Fluoride & the Kidneys: (Click for more detail)

Kidney disease markedly increases an individual's susceptibility to fluoride toxicity.

The kidneys are responsible for ridding the body of ingested fluoride, and thereby preventing the buildup of toxic levels of fluoride in the body.

In healthy adults, the kidneys are able to excrete approximately 50% of an ingested dose of fluoride.

However, in adults with kidney disease the kidneys may excrete as little as 10 to 20% of an ingested dose - thus increasing the body burden of fluoride and increasing an individual's susceptibility to fluoride poisoning (e.g. renal osteodystrophy).

The bone changes commonly found among patients with advanced kidney disease closely resemble the bone changes found among individuals with the osteomalacic-type of skeletal fluorosis. This raises the possibility that some individuals with kidney disease are suffering from undiagnosed skeletal fluorosis.

Tyson Foods and antibiotics
EXCERPT:
Tyson agrees to settle lawsuit over antibiotics

BALTIMORE — Tyson Foods Inc. has agreed to settle a lawsuit that accused the poultry giant of falsely claiming its chickens were “raised without antibiotics.”

Under the proposed settlement, Springdale, Ark.-based Tyson would pay up to $50 to anyone who bought poultry that was labeled antiobiotics-free.

The total value of the settlement is $5 million, not including $3 million in attorneys’ fees. If Tyson doesn’t give that much money back to consumers, it will donate the difference to food banks.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs and for Tyson have asked a federal judge in Baltimore to grant preliminary approval to the settlement on Friday. At that point, Tyson would begin a national print and Internet advertising campaign