Exposure to the heavy metal cadmium is known to irritate the stomach and lungs or cause kidney disease, but new research links another health issue to inadvertently ingesting low doses of the pollutant: high activation of the antibodies that cause an allergic response.
Researchers traced this link in mice to gut bacteria that, after exposure to ingested cadmium, over-produced an enzyme that degrades vitamin D — effectively creating conditions that mimic vitamin D deficiency. In terms of clinical effects, the mice sensitized to a specific allergen that consumed cadmium produced high levels of antibodies against the allergen as well as immune cells that increased their respiratory symptoms.
Separate epidemiological research has shown an association in children between vitamin D deficiency and higher susceptibility to asthma and other allergy symptoms. And a Congressional report released on Sept. 29 disclosed an unexpected source of cadmium in kids, announcing that dangerous levels of toxic heavy metals, including cadmium, had been detected in several brands of baby food.
«The problem is, because cadmium doesn’t degrade easily — it has a half-life in the body of at least 15 years — if you are chronically exposed to low doses, it accumulates over time,» said Prosper Boyaka, professor and chair of veterinary biosciences at The Ohio State University and senior author of the study. «It’s also not something we can easily avoid being exposed to because it can remain in air, soil and water.»
Most people ingest the natural element cadmium, a heavy metal used for batteries and making pigments, by eating plant and animal foods that have absorbed the pollutant or drinking contaminated water. The Environmental Protection Agency lists cadmium among eight metals considered extremely toxic at small concentrations.
Boyaka and colleagues found that an experimental compound that inhibits the activated enzymes reduced the allergic response in mice that ingested cadmium.
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Materials provided by Ohio State University. Original written by Emily Caldwell. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.