Mercury and its many forms

There is alot of information and at the same time confusion about both mercury and its various forms and its dangers. Three different types of mercury exist and  they have varying levels of toxicity issues.

Mercury comes in three forms

1. Elemental mercury
2. Inorganic mercury
3. Organic mercury

1. Elemental mercury
Mercury is a extremely heavy, odourless, silver coloured liquid. Mercury exists as a natural element in the earth's crust. Elemental mercury is also known as metallic mercury, liquid mercury, liquid silver and quicksilver.

What are sources of exposure to elemental mercury?
Sources of elemental mercury in the home include broken mercury thermometers, broken fluorescent light bulbs, dental amalgam fillings, mercury containing latex paints. There also has been some recorded exposure to elemental mercury in the form of folk medicines, although these in the UK as many countries are now heavily regulated.

 
2. Inorganic Mercury
Inorganic mercury compounds are known as "mercuric salts." Some of the mercuric salts include: mercuric chloride, mercuric iodide, mercuric nitrate, mercuric sulphide, yellow mercuric oxide, red mercuric oxide, ammoniated mercury, mercurous chloride and mercurous acetate.

What are sources of inorganic mercury compounds?
Some folk medicines from outside the United States contain high amounts of mercury that can cause mercury poisoning. Two common mercury compounds are calomel and cinnabar.

3. Organic Mercury
 
Organic mercury compounds are found in a variety of products such as certain fungicides and antibacterials . They are also used, although to a lesser extent now medically. One of the biggest exposures to organic mercury though is through our diet. 

What is the most common source of organic mercury?
In the general population, the main source of mercury poisoning is the ingestion of mercury- contaminated food, usually fish. When lake, river or ocean water is contaminated with methyl-mercury compounds, the mercury accumulates and magnifies in the flesh of the fish. The older and larger the fish the higher concentration builds up, this is why larger fish like Tuna are more problematic than smaller younger fish. Here organic mercury concentrations can be more than 1,000 times greater in the fish than in the surrounding water. People who eat fish as a main component of their diet may be at risk if a river or lake is known to be polluted with mercury