Injustice in the Upper Peninsula
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Cadmium
Introduction
Cadmium is an element that occurs naturally in the earth's crust. Pure cadmium is a soft, silver-white metal; however cadmium is not usually found in the environment as a metal. It is usually found as a mineral combined with other elements such as oxygen (cadmium oxide), chlorine (cadmium chloride), or sulfur (cadmium sulfate, cadmium sulfide). These compounds are solids that may dissolve in water but do not evaporate or disappear from the environment. All soils and rocks, including coal and mineral fertilizers, have some cadmium in them. Cadmium is often found as part of small particles present in air. You cannot tell by smell or taste that cadmium is present in air or water, because it does not have any definite odor or taste.
Most cadmium used in this country is extracted during the production of other metals such as zinc, lead, or copper. Cadmium has many uses in industry and consumer products, mainly batteries, pigments, metal coatings, and plastics.
Fate & Transport
Cadmium can enter the environment in several ways. It can enter the air from the burning of coal and household waste, and metal mining and refining processes. It can enter water from disposal of waste water from households or industries. Fertilizers often have some cadmium in them and fertilizer use causes cadmium to enter the soil. Spills and leaks from hazardous waste sites can also cause cadmium to enter soil or water. Cadmium attached to small particles may get into the air and travel a long way before coming down to earth as dust or in rain or snow. Cadmium does not break down in the environment but can change into different forms. Most cadmium stays where it enters the environment for a long time. Some of the cadmium that enters water will bind to soil but some will remain in the water. Cadmium in soil can enter water or be taken up by plants. Fish, plants, and animals take up cadmium from the environment.
Exposure Pathways
Food and cigarette smoke are the largest potential sources of cadmium exposure for members of the general population. Average cadmium levels in U.S. foods range from 2 to 40 parts of cadmium per billion parts of food (ppb). Average cadmium levels in cigarettes range from 1,000 to 3,000 ppb. Air levels in U.S. cities are low, ranging from 5 to 40 nanograms per cubic meter. The level of cadmium in most drinking water supplies is less than 1 ppb. In the United States, the average person eats food with about 30 micrograms (ug) of cadmium in it each day. About 1 to 3 ug per day of cadmium is absorbed from food, and smokers absorb an additional 1 to 3 ug per day from cigarettes. Smoke from other people's cigarettes probably does not cause nonsmokers to take in much cadmium. Cadmium is found at hazardous waste sites at average concentrations of about 4 ppb in soil and 5 ppb in water. Workers can be exposed to cadmium in air from making cadmium products such as batteries or paints. Workers can also be exposed from working with metal by soldering or welding. Each year almost 90,000 workers are exposed to cadmium in the United States.
Metabolism
Cadmium can enter your body from food you eat, water you drink, or particles you breathe in. Very little cadmium enters through your skin. Your body rapidly takes in about one-quarter of the cadmium you breathe, and about one-twentieth of the cadmium you eat. The rest of the cadmium is breathed out or excreted in feces. If you do not eat foods that contain enough iron or other nutrients, you are likely to take up more cadmium from your food than usual. Cigarette smoke has cadmium in it and so smokers breathe in cadmium. Other people who breathe in cadmium are people who work with cadmium, and people who live near hazardous waste sites or factories that release cadmium into the air. The general population and people living near hazardous waste sites may eat or drink cadmium in food, dust, or water.
Cadmium that enters your body stays in your liver and kidneys. Cadmium leaves your body slowly, in urine and feces. Your body keeps most cadmium in a form that is not harmful, but too much cadmium can overload your kidneys' storage system and cause health damage.
Health Effects
Cadmium has no known good effects on your health. Breathing air with very high levels of cadmium severely damages the lungs and can cause death. Breathing lower levels for years leads to a build-up of cadmium in the kidneys that can cause kidney disease. Other effects that may occur after breathing cadmium for a long time are lung damage and fragile bones. Workers who inhale cadmium for a long time may have an increased chance of getting lung cancer. No proof has been found that mice or hamsters that breathe in cadmium get lung cancer. However, some rats that breathe in cadmium do develop lung cancer. We do not know if breathing cadmium can affect your ability to have children or can harm unborn babies. Female rats and mice that breathe high levels of cadmium have fewer litters and the pups may have more birth defects than usual. Breathing cadmium causes liver damage and changes in the immune system in rats and mice. We do not know if breathing cadmium harms the liver, heart, nervous system, or immune system in humans.
Eating food or drinking water with very high cadmium levels severely irritates the stomach, leading to vomiting and diarrhea. The only people who have died from drinking cadmium are people who used cadmium to commit suicide. Eating lower levels of cadmium over a long period of time leads to a build-up of cadmium in the kidneys. This cadmium build-up causes kidney damage, and also causes bones to become fragile and break easily. We know that if female rats or mice eat or drink cadmium, their litters may be harmed. We do not know if eating cadmium affects your ability to have children or harms unborn babies. Animals eating or drinking cadmium sometimes get high blood pressure, iron poor blood, liver disease, and nerve or brain damage. We do not know if humans eating or drinking cadmium get any of these diseases. Studies of humans or animals that eat or drink cadmium have not found increases in cancer. These studies were not strong enough to show that eating or drinking cadmium definitely does not cause cancer. The Department of Health and Human Services has determined that cadmium and cadmium compounds may reasonably be anticipated to be carcinogens. The International Agency for Research on Cancer has determined that cadmium is probably carcinogenic to humans. The EPA has determined that cadmium is a probable human carcinogen by inhalation. Skin contact with cadmium is not known to cause health effects in humans or animals.
Information excerpted from
Introduction
Cadmium is an element that occurs naturally in the earth's crust. Pure cadmium is a soft, silver-white metal; however cadmium is not usually found in the environment as a metal. It is usually found as a mineral combined with other elements such as oxygen (cadmium oxide), chlorine (cadmium chloride), or sulfur (cadmium sulfate, cadmium sulfide). These compounds are solids that may dissolve in water but do not evaporate or disappear from the environment. All soils and rocks, including coal and mineral fertilizers, have some cadmium in them. Cadmium is often found as part of small particles present in air. You cannot tell by smell or taste that cadmium is present in air or water, because it does not have any definite odor or taste.
Most cadmium used in this country is extracted during the production of other metals such as zinc, lead, or copper. Cadmium has many uses in industry and consumer products, mainly batteries, pigments, metal coatings, and plastics.
Fate & Transport
Cadmium can enter the environment in several ways. It can enter the air from the burning of coal and household waste, and metal mining and refining processes. It can enter water from disposal of waste water from households or industries. Fertilizers often have some cadmium in them and fertilizer use causes cadmium to enter the soil. Spills and leaks from hazardous waste sites can also cause cadmium to enter soil or water. Cadmium attached to small particles may get into the air and travel a long way before coming down to earth as dust or in rain or snow. Cadmium does not break down in the environment but can change into different forms. Most cadmium stays where it enters the environment for a long time. Some of the cadmium that enters water will bind to soil but some will remain in the water. Cadmium in soil can enter water or be taken up by plants. Fish, plants, and animals take up cadmium from the environment.
Exposure Pathways
Food and cigarette smoke are the largest potential sources of cadmium exposure for members of the general population. Average cadmium levels in U.S. foods range from 2 to 40 parts of cadmium per billion parts of food (ppb). Average cadmium levels in cigarettes range from 1,000 to 3,000 ppb. Air levels in U.S. cities are low, ranging from 5 to 40 nanograms per cubic meter. The level of cadmium in most drinking water supplies is less than 1 ppb. In the United States, the average person eats food with about 30 micrograms (ug) of cadmium in it each day. About 1 to 3 ug per day of cadmium is absorbed from food, and smokers absorb an additional 1 to 3 ug per day from cigarettes. Smoke from other people's cigarettes probably does not cause nonsmokers to take in much cadmium. Cadmium is found at hazardous waste sites at average concentrations of about 4 ppb in soil and 5 ppb in water. Workers can be exposed to cadmium in air from making cadmium products such as batteries or paints. Workers can also be exposed from working with metal by soldering or welding. Each year almost 90,000 workers are exposed to cadmium in the United States.
Metabolism
Cadmium can enter your body from food you eat, water you drink, or particles you breathe in. Very little cadmium enters through your skin. Your body rapidly takes in about one-quarter of the cadmium you breathe, and about one-twentieth of the cadmium you eat. The rest of the cadmium is breathed out or excreted in feces. If you do not eat foods that contain enough iron or other nutrients, you are likely to take up more cadmium from your food than usual. Cigarette smoke has cadmium in it and so smokers breathe in cadmium. Other people who breathe in cadmium are people who work with cadmium, and people who live near hazardous waste sites or factories that release cadmium into the air. The general population and people living near hazardous waste sites may eat or drink cadmium in food, dust, or water.
Cadmium that enters your body stays in your liver and kidneys. Cadmium leaves your body slowly, in urine and feces. Your body keeps most cadmium in a form that is not harmful, but too much cadmium can overload your kidneys' storage system and cause health damage.
Health Effects
Cadmium has no known good effects on your health. Breathing air with very high levels of cadmium severely damages the lungs and can cause death. Breathing lower levels for years leads to a build-up of cadmium in the kidneys that can cause kidney disease. Other effects that may occur after breathing cadmium for a long time are lung damage and fragile bones. Workers who inhale cadmium for a long time may have an increased chance of getting lung cancer. No proof has been found that mice or hamsters that breathe in cadmium get lung cancer. However, some rats that breathe in cadmium do develop lung cancer. We do not know if breathing cadmium can affect your ability to have children or can harm unborn babies. Female rats and mice that breathe high levels of cadmium have fewer litters and the pups may have more birth defects than usual. Breathing cadmium causes liver damage and changes in the immune system in rats and mice. We do not know if breathing cadmium harms the liver, heart, nervous system, or immune system in humans.
Eating food or drinking water with very high cadmium levels severely irritates the stomach, leading to vomiting and diarrhea. The only people who have died from drinking cadmium are people who used cadmium to commit suicide. Eating lower levels of cadmium over a long period of time leads to a build-up of cadmium in the kidneys. This cadmium build-up causes kidney damage, and also causes bones to become fragile and break easily. We know that if female rats or mice eat or drink cadmium, their litters may be harmed. We do not know if eating cadmium affects your ability to have children or harms unborn babies. Animals eating or drinking cadmium sometimes get high blood pressure, iron poor blood, liver disease, and nerve or brain damage. We do not know if humans eating or drinking cadmium get any of these diseases. Studies of humans or animals that eat or drink cadmium have not found increases in cancer. These studies were not strong enough to show that eating or drinking cadmium definitely does not cause cancer. The Department of Health and Human Services has determined that cadmium and cadmium compounds may reasonably be anticipated to be carcinogens. The International Agency for Research on Cancer has determined that cadmium is probably carcinogenic to humans. The EPA has determined that cadmium is a probable human carcinogen by inhalation. Skin contact with cadmium is not known to cause health effects in humans or animals.
Information excerpted from
Toxicological Profile for Cadmium April 1993 Update
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
United States Public Health Service
