Our soil: A health hazard?

Heavy metals in our soil

The food we eat has such a profound effect on our health that it’s important to ensure we have the freshest and healthiest food possible.  Many of the chronic illnesses we experience today may be caused by heavy metals, so heavy-metal-contaminated soil is a major concern.

Heavy metals are found in all soils. Some, like zinc and copper, are essential for human health in small amounts. However, Yunan Wan et al. write in their paper, published in the journal Toxics, that others, such as cadmium, mercury, and arsenic, have no beneficial role in the human body and can be toxic even at low levels. 

How did they get there?

Because of their serious health impacts, understanding how these metals enter the soil is crucial. In the journal Toxics, Ahmed Alengebawy et al. review the natural ways that they can enter the soil, including, 

• sedimentary rocks, 
• volcanic eruptions, 
• soil formation, and 
• rock weathering.

Forest fires are another natural way that heavy metals can enter the soil. Research from Stanford University "shows wildfires can transform a natural element in soils into a cancer-causing and readily airborne metal known as chromium 6."

In nature, chromium mostly occurs in a form known as trivalent chromium or chromium 3, an essential nutrient that our bodies use to break down glucose. Chromium 6, which increases cancer risk when inhaled or ingested via contaminated drinking water, most often results from industrial processes. High levels of chromium 6 historically have entered the environment from industrial runoff and wastewater.

Mohammad Velayatzadeh, in the abstract of his book "Heavy Metals in Surface Soils and Crops," cites the following human activities as responsible for soil contamination:

• Air pollution 
• Agricultural chemicals such as fertilizers and pesticides
• Sewage sludge and municipal waste compost
• Industrial waste from factories

The most toxic metals in the soil reduce biological activity and the availability of biological resources, he explains. They can enter the human body through ingestion, inhalation, and skin contact. 

Geoengineering: Another source of heavy metals

Geoengineering is another, more recent, source of air pollution that contaminates the soil. Former US Air Force veteran and whistleblower Kristen Meghan has raised alarms about the military’s use of stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI) to reflect sunlight by releasing heavy metals like sulfates, barium, strontium, and aluminum into the atmosphere. These particles eventually settle back to earth, contaminating our soil and, consequently, our food.

Why are they so bad?

These metals have been proven to cause acute and chronic poisoning as well as chronic diseases. Velayatzadeh identified the serious problems they cause (Ch.3, Heavy Metal Toxicity), such as,

‍“. . . nervous disorders, hormone imbalances, and respiratory disorders and heart disease, memory loss, various types of cancer and eventually death. 

“Arsenic, lead and cadmium . . .  cause hemoglobin biosynthesis disorders and anemia, increased blood pressure, kidney damage, miscarriage and premature birth, nervous system disorders, and brain damage, male infertility, reduced learning ability and behavioral disorders in children.”

Additionally, Velayatzadeh highlights the serious health consequences of vanadium and nickel. Vanadium causes respiratory abnormalities and has negative effects on the liver and kidneys while increasing nickel accumulation, which can lead to various cancers and other health issues.

Hair Analysis Nutrition reviewed the symptoms of poisoning caused by the chemtrail metals Meghan pointed out. Exposure to barium can lead to early symptoms like muscle weakness, breathing difficulties, and irregular heartbeats. If the exposure continues, it can escalate to more severe issues, including kidney damage and even paralysis. 

Strontium can cause bone pain and nausea, potentially leading to osteoporosis, and blood cell problems over time. Both metals impact the kidneys and affect cardiovascular health.

Aluminum can initially cause headaches, digestive troubles, and memory issues. Long-term consumption of aluminum has been linked to severe neurological disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease. It can also weaken bones and compromise the immune system, increasing the risk of infections.

Heavy metals in organic foods too!

Organic foods are supposed to be cleaner since they are, by and large, grown without the use of toxic pesticides, but even they take up heavy metals from the soil. As Meghan emphasized, the metals used in geoengineering fall from the sky and contaminate organic soil, too:

So, if you're growing organic food, you know, it's, we’re going to go back to the plexiglass barriers on our plants? I mean, it's horrible! That's why you can ban it anywhere. We've had states, states in the United States ban it, and that is great to get the ball rolling.

Eat This, Not That notes that CNN Health reported that buying organic produce doesn't help much if the soil and water contain heavy metals. Author Sarah Wong drew attention to the prevalence of heavy metals in a variety of foods, conventionally and organically grown.

Sweet potatoes and carrots are also susceptible to soil contamination. Root vegetables are considered at higher risk for containing heavy metals, according to Consumer Reports. Buying all-natural or organic doesn't make much of a difference, either, CNN Health reported, since the methods for organic farming also use soil and water.

The metal was present in standard and organic spinach products. As You Sow urges people to voice their concerns directly to companies, in order to push regulation changes for the better.

. . . In December 2021, an effort by the nonprofit group As You Sow to "promote environmental and social corporate responsibility" revealed dangerous levels of cadmium in spinach sold by large retailers like Safeway, Trader Joe's, and Target.

. . .

Concerning amounts of lead can be sequestered in the bones of farm animals, which leaches out into the broth. A 2013 study found that, even in organic sources, lead could be seen at noticeably high levels in bone broth compared to the tap water with which it was cooked

Bone broth indeed does wonders for your health, so if you want to incorporate it into your diet to support your musculoskeletal and digestive well-being, stick to drinking it in limited amounts.

The ten most contaminated foods are baby food, fruit juice, white rice, dark chocolate, whey and plant-based protein powder, leafy greens, root vegetables, spices, fish, and bone broths are .

Optimism for the future

Dr. Deane Falcone, PhD, chief scientific officer at the clean-water hydroponic vertical farming company Crop One, when asked about the outlook for removing heavy metals from the food supply was optimistic, as Wong noted.

The outlook on decreasing heavy metals in our food supply is optimistic—as long as people continue to be educated on the issue. Dr. Falcone notes that positive change is on the horizon. "Most people are generally unaware that the problem exists. When you have children, suddenly you become more aware of what's in your food. "We're at a transformation point, so we have the technology to control growing systems. The next phase in agriculture production is higher quality and higher nutrient value across the industry."

Detoxing from heavy metals

Fortunately, we don't have to wait for the positive change still on the horizon to detoxify from the accumulation of heavy metals in our bodies. There are a variety of foods that can help us do that naturally.

Planetagarden highlights  the following foods as detoxifying:

• Cilantro
• Garlic
• Wild blueberries
• Lemon water.
• Spirulina.
• ‍Chlorella.
• Barley grass juice powder.
• Atlantic dulse.

Dr. Berg suggests these foods to help detox from heavy metals:

Sulforaphane-Rich Foods:
Sulforaphane is a potent compound found in cruciferous vegetables like broccoli sprouts, kale, and cabbage.

‍Cilantro:
Cilantro contains compounds that can bind to heavy metals like mercury and lead, helping to remove them from the body.

‍Garlic:
‍ [Garlic] contains sulfur compounds that can help mobilize heavy metals from tissues and escort them out of the body. But garlic's benefits don't stop there.
In addition to being a potent chelator, garlic also helps up-regulate the body's own detoxification enzymes, enhancing our natural ability to neutralize and eliminate toxins. . . .

‍Turmeric and Cruciferous Vegetables:
Turmeric, . . . contains . . . curcumin that has impressive detoxifying properties. Curcumin helps stimulate the production of glutathione, the body's master antioxidant, which plays a key role in neutralizing heavy metals and other toxins. . . .

Selenium (found in Brazil's nuts and other foods) binds mercury but, as Health and Science points out, it is also needed for biological processes; we must get enough selenium in order for it to accomplish both purposes.

Mercury generates free radicals and inhibits the trace element selenium that is an integral part of around 30 essential selenoproteins. Because of that, mercury is able to inflict serious damage upon our cardiovascular system, brain, nervous system, thyroid gland, and other tissues that are dependent on various selenoproteins. . . .

The selenium compound selenide binds mercury by forming mercury selenide, which neutralizes the harmful effect of mercury. However, once that bond is made, selenium is no longer available to react with the selenoproteins that depend on it. In other words, mercury increases our need for selenium, as we need selenium both to neutralize the dangerous heavy metal and to support the many essential selenoproteins at the same time.

Barbara Oneill offers a heavy metal detox in her tweet below:

Clean soil should not be negotiable

It is not an understatement to say that healthy soil is imperative, as Velayatzadeh noted in his introduction.

Soil is one of the valuable resources of nature, which provides about 96% of the food needed by humans. Healthy and clean soil is very necessary and important for life on earth.

Fortunately, there are ways to decontaminate the soil and safe ways for home gardeners to grow heavy-metal-free vegetables, which will be the topic of our next article, "Take charge of your health: You can grow heavy-metal-free veggies."

‍

Related articles:

From toxins to nutrition: Senator Booker’s bill to transform school lunches

‍