Hair analysis has long been a method of testing by naturopathic doctors and in years past MD’s who have ordered this test have lost their medical license! The level of toxic elements in the hair is a good way to measure the overall body burden. Measuring levels of toxic substances such as lead, arsenic, mercury, aluminum and cadmium is very helpful when evaluating the cause of chronic diseases including: neurological disorders such as Multiple Sclerosis, neuropathies, Parkinson’s Disease, reduced intelligence and lowered school achievement scores; behavior disorders including hyperactivity and autism in children; hypertension and cardiac risk.

In this day and age, where are we getting these heavy metals from? Sources of lead include cigarette smoking as well as smoking cannabis. Humans recycle heavy metals by eliminating them through the bowel and urine and guess what? Human waste is used to fertilize food crops. Sure it is sterilized before use but it is NOT evaluated for heavy metals, drug waste products and toxins that are then recycled into the environment. Industrial toxic wastes that contain heavy metals found in liquid fertilizers are used to support crops and grazing lands. So the vegetables you are eating could be a source unless you are eating certified organic produce. The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) estimates that annually, approximately 58 tons of mercury are released into the atmosphere. Much of this mercury will ultimately become incorporated into the aquatic food chain.

The accumulations of toxic elements are slow and associated with diverse and non-specific symptoms and overt expression of associated chronic disease is often not realized until later in life. Children are potentially more vulnerable to these toxins of heavy metals and other chemicals because they are more heavily exposed pound for pound, they eat more food, they drink more water and they breathe more air, they play on the ground and put their hands in their mouths so they transfer more toxic chemicals into their body than adults do. Exposure of unborn fetuses to heavy metals and chemicals that cross the placenta are beginning to be recognized as real threats and the EPA recommends that pregnant women eat fish at most once per week due to the mercury exposure.

Getting exposed doesn’t mean that the person will get ill. In Beethoven’s time why didn’t more people have serious illnesses such as he had? The reason is genetic susceptibility and nutritional status. Healthy people have healthy livers and detoxify chemicals and heavy metals down two detoxification pathways. One pathway takes the substance out of the cell, the other makes it water soluble so that it is excreted more readily through the bowel and the kidneys. If there is a genetic weakness or a nutritional deficiency that interferes with either or both of these pathways that person is going to have more repercussions from exposure than the person who can detoxify effectively. We see this every day in how people react differently to different medications. There will come a time, to avoid law suits, when the patient must undergo genetic testing before a drug is prescribed. It is well documented that if there is a problem with the detoxification pathways of the body, a drug could cause serious side effects, or even death, which could have been prevented if this information was known before it was prescribed.

Early detection of toxic metal accumulation, removal from the exposure and appropriate nutritional support of detoxification processes of the body are paramount for the prevention of chronic adverse health effects seen in children and adults today. We thank Beethoven for insisting that the cause of his chronic health problems be discovered for all the world to know!

Dr. Pincott has been practicing naturopathic medicine since 1985 and is currently practicing in Campbell River. She can be reached at (250) 286-3655 or www.DrPincott.com