Harmful Elements

Berrylium .

Beryllium is a metallic chemical element grouped with the alkaline earth elements. lightest of the alkaline earth elements, and appears in a rigid, steely gray form when it is pure.

Harmful Effects to the Environment

-Animals ingesting beryllium is thought to present a low risk of toxicity.

- However, dogs fed a diet containing beryllium developed ulcers.

-Abraded or lacerated skin, exposed to beryllium may develop rashes or ulcers.

Harmful Effects on the Human Body

When inhaled as a particulate, some beryllium compounds can lead to an irreversible and sometimes fatal scarring of the lungs known as berylliosis or chronic beryllium disease (CBD)

Symptoms of CBD may include persistent coughing, shortness of breath with physical exertion, fatigue, chest and joint pain, blood in the sputum, rapid heart rate, loss of appetite or anorexia, weight loss, fevers and night sweats, right side heart enlargement

Cobalt .Cobalt is a chemical element with symbol Co and atomic number 27. The element, produced by reductive smelting, is a hard, lustrous, silver-gray metal. It is used for batteries and alloys

Harmful Effects to the Environment

-Coal combustion and mining, processing of cobalt-containing ores and the production and use of cobalt chemicals add cobalt to the environment.

-Cobalt cannot be destroyed once it has entered the environment.

- Cobalt inhalation may lead to ‘hard metal disease’, respiratory sensitization, pneumonia, wheezing, and asthma.

Some health effects are - Vomiting and nausea- Vision problems- Heart problems- Thyroid damage

Harmful Effects on the Human Body

-Cobalt is beneficial for humans because it is a part of vitamin B12.

- too high concentrations of cobalt may damage human health. When we breathe in too high concentrations of cobalt through air we experience lung effects, such as asthma and pneumonia

Iodine .Iodine is a nonmetallic chemical element that is found abundantly in seawater and in some minerals in the earth. It is classified in the halogens, along with elements like chlorine and bromine, and like other elements in this group, it is reactive and toxic in large amounts. The element is also a vital trace element needed for proper human nutrition.

Harmful Effects to the Environment

- Iodine may be radioactive. The radioactive isotopes are formed naturally during chemical reactions in the atmosphere. Most radioactive isotopes of iodine have very short half-lives and will reshape into stable iodine compounds quickly. However, there is one radioactive form of iodine that has a half-live of millions of years and that is seriously harmful to the environment. This isotope enters the air from nuclear power plants, where it is formed during uranium and plutonium processing. Accidents in nuclear power plants have caused the release of large amounts of radioactive iodine into air.

Harmful Effects on the Human Body

-Humans that eat little to no iodine-contained food can experience iodine shortages. The function of the thyroid gland will then slow down and the thyroid gland will start swelling up

- Large quantities of iodine can be dangerous because the thyroid gland will labor too hastily. This affects the entire body; it causes disturbed heartbeats and loss of weight.

Lead .Lead is a soft metal that has known many applications over the years. It has been used widely since 5000 BC for application in metal products, cables and pipelines, but also in paints and pesticides. Lead is one out of four metals that have the most damaging effects on human health.

Harmful Effects to the Environment

-Lead can end up in water and soils through corrosion of leaded pipelines in a water transporting system and through corrosion of leaded paints. It cannot be broken down; it can only convert to other forms.

- Lead accumulates in the bodies of water organisms and soil organisms. These will experience health effects from lead poisoning.

- Soil functions are disturbed by lead intervention, especially near highways and farmlands, where extreme concentrations may be present. Soil organisms suffer from lead poisoning, too.

Harmful Effects on the Human Body

-For as far as we know, lead fulfils no essential function in the human body, it can merely do harm after uptake from food, air or water.

Lead can cause several unwanted effects, such as:- A rise in blood pressure- Kidney damage- Disruption of nervous systems- Brain damage- Declined fertility of men through sperm damage- Diminished learning abilities of children- Behavioral disruptions of children, such as aggression, impulsive behavior and hyperactivity

Cadmium .

Cadmium is a chemical element with the symbol Cd and atomic number 48. This soft, bluish-white metal is chemically similar to the two other stable metals in group 12, zinc and mercury.

Harmful Effects to the Environment

-Cadmium strongly adsorbs to organic matter in soils. When cadmium is present in soils it can be extremely dangerous, as the uptake through food will increase. Soils that are acidified enhance the cadmium uptake by plants. This is a potential danger to the animals that are dependent upon the plants for survival. Cadmium can accumulate in their bodies, especially when they eat multiple plants.

- Earthworms and other essential soil organisms are extremely susceptive to cadmium poisoning. They can die at very low concentrations and this has consequences for the soil structure.

- Animals eating or drinking cadmium sometimes get high blood-pressures, liver disease and nerve or brain damage.

Harmful Effects on the Human Body

-Human uptake of cadmium takes place mainly through food. An exposure to significantly higher cadmium levels occurs when people smoke.

- . When people breathe in cadmium it can severely damage the lungs. This may even cause death.

-Other health effects that can be caused by cadmium are:

- Diarrhea, stomach pains and severe vomiting- Bone fracture- Reproductive failure and possibly even infertility- Damage to the central nervous system- Damage to the immune system- Psychological disorders- Possibly DNA damage or cancer development

Lithium .Chromium is a chemical element which has the symbol Cr and atomic number 24. It is the first element in Group 6. It is a steely-gray, lustrous, hard metal that takes a high polish and has a high melting point. It is also odorless, tasteless, and malleable.

Harmful Effects to the Environment

-when the amount of chromium in the soil rises, this can still lead to higher concentrations in crops. Acidification of soil can also influence chromium uptake by crops. Plants usually absorb only chromium(III). This may be the essential kind of chromium, but when concentrations exceed a certain value, negative effects can still occur.

- Chromium is not known to accumulate in the bodies of fish, but high concentrations of chromium, due to the disposal of metal products in surface waters, can damage the gills of fish that swim near the point of disposal.

- In animals chromium can cause respiratory problems, a lower ability to fight disease, birth defects, infertility and tumor formation.

Harmful Effects on the Human Body

-People can be exposed to chromium through breathing, eating or drinking and through skin contact with chromium or chromium compounds.

- Chromium(VI) is known to cause various health effects. When it is a compound in leather products, it can cause allergic reactions, such as skin rash.

Other health problems that are caused by chromium(VI) are:

- Skin rashes- Upset stomachs and ulcers- Respiratory problems- Weakened immune systems- Kidney and liver damage- Alteration of genetic material- Lung cancer- Death

Fluorine (symbol F) isthe chemical element with atomic number 9. It is the lightest halogen. Fluorine is the most electronegative element and is extremely reactive, requiring great care in handling. It has a single stable isotope, fluorine-19.

Flourine .

Harmful Effects to the Environment

-Too much fluoride, whether taken in from the soil by roots, or adsorbed from the atmosphere by the leaves, retards the growth of plants and reduces crop yields. Those more affected are corns and apricots.

- Animals that eat fluorine-containing plants may accumulate large amounts of fluorine in their bodies. Fluorine primarily accumulates in bones. Consequently, animals that are exposed to high concentrations of fluorine suffer from dental decay and bone degradation. Finally, it can cause low birth-weights.

Harmful Effects on the Human Body

-Fluorine is essential for the maintenance of solidity of our bones. Fluorine can also protect us from dental decay, if it is applied through toothpaste twice a day.

- If fluorine is absorbed too frequently, it can cause teeth decay, osteoporosis and harm to kidneys, bones, nerves and muscles.

- Fluorine gas is released in the industries. This gas is very dangerous, as it can cause death at very high concentrations. At low concentrations it causes eye and nose irritations.

Mercury . Mercury is a chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80. It is also known as quicksilver or hydrargyrum . A heavy, silvery d-block element, mercury is the only metal that is liquid

Harmful Effects to the Environment-Methylmercury is particularly damaging to developing embryos, which are five to ten times more sensitive than adults. Exposure to methylmercury is usually by ingestion, and it is absorbed more readily and excreted more slowly than other forms of mercury.

- the form released from broken thermometers, causes tremors, gingivitis, and excitability when vapors are inhaled over a long period of time

Harmful Effects on the Human Body

-exposed to methylmercury almost entirely by eating contaminated fish and wildlife that are at the top of aquatic foodchains.

- which damages the gastrointestinal tract and causes kidney failure

- If elemental mercury is ingested, it is absorbed relatively slowly and may pass through the digestive system without causing damage.

Arsenic .

Arsenic can be found naturally on earth in small concentrations. It occurs in soil and minerals and it may enter air, water and land through wind-blown dust and water run-off. It is one of the first known toxic substances to man.

Harmful Effects to the Environment

-Plants absorb arsenic fairly easily, so that high-ranking concentrations may be present in food.

- The concentrations of the dangerous inorganic arsenics that are currently present in surface waters enhance the chances of alteration of genetic materials of fish. This is mainly caused by accumulation of arsenic in the bodies of plant-eating freshwater organisms.

- Birds eat the fish that already contain eminent amounts of arsenic and will die as a result of arsenic poisoning as the fish is decomposed in their bodies.

Harmful Effects on the Human Body

-Humans may be exposed to arsenic through food, water and air. Exposure may also occur through skin contact with soil or water that contains arsenic.

-fish that contain significant amounts of inorganic arsenic may be a danger to human health.

-Exposure to inorganic arsenic can cause various health effects, such as irritation of the stomach and intestines, decreased production of red and white blood cells, skin changes and lung irritation.

- chances of cancer development, especially the chances of development of skin cancer, lung cancer, liver cancer and lymphatic cancer.

- Finally, inorganic arsenic can damage DNA.

- A lethal dose of arsenic oxide is generally regarded as 100 mg.

Barium .

Barium is a chemical element with symbol Ba and atomic number 56. It is the fifth element in Group 2, a soft silvery metallic alkaline earth metal.

Harmful Effects to the Environment

-Enters the atmosphere through bruning coal and oil and during mining ores

- Water-soluble barium compounds are poisonous. At low doses, barium ions act as a muscle stimulant, whereas higher doses affect the nervous system, causing cardiac irregularities, tremors, weakness, anxiety, dyspnea and paralysis.

Harmful Effects on the Human Body

-Muscle fatigue, difficult breathing, increased blood pressure and numbness are some symptoms for mild barium exposure

- Can cause gastrointestinal problems like vomiting

- Extended exposure are found to cause changes in heart rhythm, kidney problems, weight loss, paralysis and even death.

- It is albeit still unclassified as a carcinogen

Group 6 .

• Judmel Acharon

• James Aguas

• Jason Almariego

• Auliver Arrellano

• Jose Maria Deang