Mercury Revisited - Part II Does Body Burden Tell The Whole Story

COMMENTARY ON READER FEEDBACK: As you know, I always appreciate reader feedback of all types on these newsletters. Recently, based on the first edition of this Mercury Revisited series, one of you commented that it appeared that I was minimizing the health risks of mercury to the point of suggesting that all fears of mercury-related ill health are unfounded. While I can understand how it could be construed that I am taking such a position, I can assure you that this is most assuredly not the case. There is no question in my mind that environmental mercury poses a major health threat worldwide. However, I also strongly feel that many educators on this issue have employed a method of education and problem-solving concerning mercury that is counterproductive. For, it appears to me that much of the information on mercury available to the public via the internet or lay press contains a potent mix of truth, semi-truth, and outright lies that has the effect of terrifying the public rather than educating them. Much of what I have read on mercury suggests that the mercury onslaught is coming at us in all directions, and we, for the most part, are utterly helpless in terms of combating it. Therefore, the only answer is to employ aggressive, expensive, and sometimes risky heroic measures to deal with the problem.