Arsenic – a poison of choice?
History is peppered with cases which involve arsenic and the untimely demise of some unfortunate. This includes the suspicious nature surrounding Napoleon Bonaparte’s death and its possible link to arsenic laced wine.
Arsenic is a metal which is ubiquitous in the environment. It can be found in certain water supplies and seafood, as well as fruit, vegetables cereals and rice.
The concentration of arsenic present in plants will be related to the levels that are present in the air, soil and water, as well as the use of arsenic containing pesticides. In addition, the burning of fossil fuels, mining and volcanic activity can also contribute to the levels of arsenic in the environment.
The level of arsenic in water will vary and the presence of rocks which have high concentrations of arsenic in the ground water areas will contribute to the high levels that can be found in water. If this is used for drinking water or crop irrigation then the exposure level will be potentially higher.
Arsenic exists as both organic and inorganic forms. There are no major health concerns provided exposure to organic arsenic is kept to a low level and is only occasional. It is a different story however for inorganic arsenic which is more toxic and has been linked with more serious health effects that include cancer.
The manifestations of toxicity arising from ingestion of arsenic will depend on
- Whether it was the organic or inorganic form of arsenic that was ingested.
- The amount that was ingested. For example ingestion of a large amount (acute toxicity) would produce different symptoms of toxicity compared to ingestion of smaller amounts over a longer time period (chronic toxicity).
Arsenic threat in Bangladesh
http://www.fao.org/Ag/magazine/0605sp1.htm
Mounting evidence suggests that high levels of arsenic in water used to grow crops could degrade soils, reduce yields – and find its way into food.
BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/2886079.stm
"For many people in Bangladesh it can sometimes literally be a choice between death by arsenic poisoning or death by diarrhoea," says Timothy Claydon, country representative of Water Aid…”