The risks of cadmium contamination

Cadmium is very common in certain seafood and can be harmful to people.

cadmium contamination

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Cadmium is a chemical element widely used in the electronics, cement and phosphate fertilizers industries.

Electroplating, the process of covering one metal with another, is one of the industrial activities that uses the most cadmium. The element is also present in smoke from burning fossil fuels and cigarettes, urban waste and sewage sediment.

Cadmium in the human body has no organic function. When we absorb it, it competes with zinc and copper, hindering our absorption of these nutrients; then it builds up in our kidneys and arteries and, in the long run, can be cancerous. It also causes a disease called itai-itai, which leads to metabolic problems, bone decalcification, and rheumatism. Inhalation of high doses can cause acute intoxication, which causes pulmonary edema.

Water is a considerable source of contamination. Drinking water has low levels of cadmium, but at sea there are many variations, depending on local pollution, contaminating marine fauna. This contamination can "pass" from prey to predator, and thus reach people.

In Santa Catarina, a study found cadmium contamination above the tolerated limit in animals from several coastal regions: Ilha dos Corais, Enseada de Ganchos, Ilha dos Arvoredos, Praia de Zimbros (where the levels were very high, indicating an increase in polluting activities ), Porto Belo Island (large seafood producer), Laranjeiras, Itajaí and São Francisco Bay. In the municipality of Penha, the amount of cadmium was very close to the limit, but it did not go beyond it.

Many of these regions are producers of bivalve molluscs, that is, those that have a double shell, such as oysters and shellfish (approximately 75% of the coast of Santa Catarina has these animals). But these molluscs are fed by filtering the water, so they absorb many impurities, having a greater potential for contamination.

Another study found cadmium contamination in fish and shellfish in the municipality of São Francisco do Conde, Bahia.

You can avoid cadmium by taking a few steps:

  • Do not smoke;
  • Use personal protective equipment (PPE) if working in an exhibition area (inquire with the company);
  • Avoid food from more contaminated regions;
  • Dispose of batteries and electronics in suitable places;
  • Do not put pendants and jewelry in your mouth;
  • Do not let children play in places that may be contaminated;
  • If you live in a place where there is cadmium contamination, look for Cetesb or the Ibama Green Line.


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