Various pollutions are everywhere in modern times, and you may not even realize when you have contracted heavy metal poisoning. What leads to heavy metal poisoning without you knowing? Unhealthy eating habits are a major cause.
Eating habits that can lead to poisoning
1. Love for seafood
Due to the spread of pollution, shellfish and sea fish have become the largest sources of heavy metals like mercury and arsenic. Therefore, long-term consumption of seafood can lead to the accumulation of toxic substances like heavy metals in the body, harming your health.
Recommendation: It is best to eat no more than one type of seafood per day, and no more than 100 grams in quantity. Try to eat smaller seafood whenever possible. Larger seafood are higher up in the food chain and tend to accumulate more pollutants. Avoid or eat less of fish heads, skins, internal organs, roe, and shark fins.
2. Frequent consumption of traditional Chinese medicine
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has always been known for being gentle and having few side effects. Therefore, some people use TCM as a daily supplement, drinking it whenever they feel like it. However, the purpose of some TCM is to fight poison with poison, albeit with low toxicity. For example, realgar and cinnabar, common in TCM, contain arsenic and mercury, respectively. Long-term, large-dose use of realgar and cinnabar can lead to the accumulation of heavy metals like mercury and arsenic in the human body, so they must be used with caution.
Recommendation: When taking TCM, you should follow your doctor's advice to determine if the medicine is suitable for your constitution and symptoms, and the maximum duration of use. This way, you can ensure the medicine is effective and avoid improper usage.
3. Love for animal organs
Animal organs are more prone to heavy metal deposition because poultry are fed with industrial feed of uncertain composition. Once an animal consumes unsafe food, for example, if its feed or drinking water is contaminated with heavy metals like cadmium, the organs have to metabolize it, causing some harmful substances like heavy metals to deposit in the organs.
Recommendation: Eat animal organs no more than once or twice a week, and each time should not exceed 50 grams. Additionally, when eating animal organs, it's best to pair them with more coarse grains and vegetables to supplement your dietary fiber.
4. Love for canned drinks
Cans are made of aluminum alloy, and the inner wall is coated with an organic material to separate the aluminum from the drink. Some poorly manufactured cans may have areas where the protective coating is missed or applied too thinly during the manufacturing process, causing the aluminum alloy to come into contact with the beverage.
Over time, aluminum gradually dissolves into the drink, which is especially harmful when the beverage is acidic or alkaline. According to a survey of 22 types of beverages by researchers, the aluminum content in canned drinks is 3 to 6 times higher than in bottled drinks.
Recommendation: Drink fewer canned beverages; switch to bottled drinks or drink plain tap water from your own cup for better health.