GiveBIG is This Wednesday, May 10!
May 8, 2017
Pollution Prevention of Cadmium and Other Heavy Metals
The Motivation
Like many heavy metals, cadmium is detrimental to human health. Cadmium can cause serious effects to renal function, bones, and the pulmonary system. It is classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as a Group 1 known human carcinogen. Many people consume far more cadmium than than they are aware of; almost all humans carry a significant body burden of the metal.
Where does cadmium come from? How are we exposed? And how can we prevent harmful exposures? These are the questions PPRC and lead scientist, Marjorie MartzEmerson, are seeking to answer.
The Project
As part of this effort, we have published an initial report, Cadmium: Human Exposure and Potential Effects. This report represents a starting point to framing and assessing the risks associated with cadmium exposure, as well as exposure to other heavy metals. The report offers preliminary answers to the following questions:
- How prevalent is cadmium?
- What do we know about its health effects?
- How are humans exposed?
- How can we mitigate risk?
PPRC’s lead scientist, Marjorie MartzEmerson, has also given two presentations on assessing cadmium risks at our 2015 and 2016 Regional Roundtables. Presentations can be found here:
- 2016 presentation, “Assessing Risks of Heavy Metals in our Foods”
- 2015 Presentation, “Cadmium in the Northwest: A Major Public Health Concern?”
We will continue to research the risks and solutions to cadmium exposures and will publish additional materials here.
Additional Resources
Coming soon…
