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> Uranium is more dense than lead and thus more poisonous I think there’s a little more to heavy metal toxicity than that...

austincheney 8y ago
How so?
- tco03 8y ago
  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metal_toxicity https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metal_toxicity It appears as there if is little correlation between metal density and toxicity
  - austincheney 8y ago
    Weird, your source says the opposite. > Toxic metals sometimes imitate the action of an essential element in the body, interfering with the metabolic process resulting in illness. Many metals, particularly heavy metals are toxic Metal toxicity is the correlation between density and reactivity. Iron and manganese are limited exceptions where iron is about 84% of hemoglobin, which is about 80% of red blood cells, but its toxic (though in larger doses) matches almost exactly the implications of other metal toxicity.
    - crottypeter 8y ago
      > Weird, your source says the opposite. No, it doesn't. Your quote truncates a sentence that supports GP's point.
      - austincheney 8y ago
        The remainder of that sentence does not suggest anything about density. But, I will ask your expert opinion: What makes metals toxic and what makes heavy metals more or less toxic than other metals?
        phonypc 8y ago
        "Toxicity is a function of solubility." First sentence of third paragraph in linked wiki page.
        austincheney 8y ago
        I mentioned that specifically in my original comment.
        phonypc 8y ago
        No, you said that uranium (which you say is toxic because of its density) "has some dissolution capability."
        austincheney 8y ago
        It pleases me you can read. For a second I was about to lose faith in humanity.
    - adrianN 8y ago
      Gold is nearly twice as dense as Lead, but it's completely safe.
      - phyzome 8y ago
        Metallic gold is pretty inert. Ionic gold, on the other hand, is toxic.
      - austincheney 8y ago
        Gold is toxic if consumed regularly. The symptoms of gold poisoning are no different than other forms of metal poisoning. The primary difference between gold and uranium is that gold isn't very reactive and so it has virtually no contact toxicity. Also, some people are allergic to gold, which does manifest contact toxicity.
        phonypc 8y ago
        Metallic gold is completely safe to consume. You'd have to be taking deliberately prepared compounds to suffer from toxicity.
        austincheney 8y ago
        * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold#Toxicity https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold#Toxicity > Although the gold ion is toxic, the acceptance of metallic gold as a food additive is due to its relative chemical inertness, and resistance to being corroded or transformed into soluble salts (gold compounds) by any known chemical process which would be encountered in the human body. This is true of known natural metabolic processes, but not true with connection to certain drug interactions. Gold is not chemically inert and can be converted into an ion or gold salt, even within the body, when mixed with other reactive non-toxic chemicals. Gold metal is popularly consumed in trace amounts of certain alcoholic beverages and there are many medications that should not be taken in connection with alcohol for many different metabolic altering processes. I am not sure if it has been thoroughly tested, but a combination of gold and nangarin could also result in potentially toxic consequences, which is why certain fruits are forbidden with consumption of certain other chemicals/drugs. This is exceedingly rare though, since platinum group metals are so expensive, but the same conditions are observed with other platinum group metals. Silver is more toxic than gold because it is more reactive, but the behaviors are similar. A major symptom of advanced toxicity from platinum group metals is a changing of skin color towards the metallic color of the metal toxin.

austincheney 8y ago

How so?

tco03 8y ago
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metal_toxicity https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metal_toxicity It appears as there if is little correlation between metal density and toxicity
- austincheney 8y ago
  Weird, your source says the opposite. > Toxic metals sometimes imitate the action of an essential element in the body, interfering with the metabolic process resulting in illness. Many metals, particularly heavy metals are toxic Metal toxicity is the correlation between density and reactivity. Iron and manganese are limited exceptions where iron is about 84% of hemoglobin, which is about 80% of red blood cells, but its toxic (though in larger doses) matches almost exactly the implications of other metal toxicity.
  - crottypeter 8y ago
    > Weird, your source says the opposite. No, it doesn't. Your quote truncates a sentence that supports GP's point.
    - austincheney 8y ago
      The remainder of that sentence does not suggest anything about density. But, I will ask your expert opinion: What makes metals toxic and what makes heavy metals more or less toxic than other metals?
      - phonypc 8y ago
        "Toxicity is a function of solubility." First sentence of third paragraph in linked wiki page.
        austincheney 8y ago
        I mentioned that specifically in my original comment.
        phonypc 8y ago
        No, you said that uranium (which you say is toxic because of its density) "has some dissolution capability."
        austincheney 8y ago
        It pleases me you can read. For a second I was about to lose faith in humanity.
  - adrianN 8y ago
    Gold is nearly twice as dense as Lead, but it's completely safe.
    - phyzome 8y ago
      Metallic gold is pretty inert. Ionic gold, on the other hand, is toxic.
    - austincheney 8y ago
      Gold is toxic if consumed regularly. The symptoms of gold poisoning are no different than other forms of metal poisoning. The primary difference between gold and uranium is that gold isn't very reactive and so it has virtually no contact toxicity. Also, some people are allergic to gold, which does manifest contact toxicity.
      - phonypc 8y ago
        Metallic gold is completely safe to consume. You'd have to be taking deliberately prepared compounds to suffer from toxicity.
        austincheney 8y ago
        * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold#Toxicity https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold#Toxicity > Although the gold ion is toxic, the acceptance of metallic gold as a food additive is due to its relative chemical inertness, and resistance to being corroded or transformed into soluble salts (gold compounds) by any known chemical process which would be encountered in the human body. This is true of known natural metabolic processes, but not true with connection to certain drug interactions. Gold is not chemically inert and can be converted into an ion or gold salt, even within the body, when mixed with other reactive non-toxic chemicals. Gold metal is popularly consumed in trace amounts of certain alcoholic beverages and there are many medications that should not be taken in connection with alcohol for many different metabolic altering processes. I am not sure if it has been thoroughly tested, but a combination of gold and nangarin could also result in potentially toxic consequences, which is why certain fruits are forbidden with consumption of certain other chemicals/drugs. This is exceedingly rare though, since platinum group metals are so expensive, but the same conditions are observed with other platinum group metals. Silver is more toxic than gold because it is more reactive, but the behaviors are similar. A major symptom of advanced toxicity from platinum group metals is a changing of skin color towards the metallic color of the metal toxin.