Heavy Metals — What They Are, Where They Come From, and Why They Matter
Of all the environmental burdens the body carries, heavy metals are among the most persistent and the most problematic. Unlike many other toxins, heavy metals do not break down. Once they enter the body, they accumulate in tissues, organs, and bones — sometimes over decades.
In the context of human health, the term typically refers to metals that are toxic to the body in accumulated quantities: lead, mercury, cadmium, arsenic, and aluminium are among the most significant. Their toxic effects increase exponentially when more than one metal is present.
Exposure is far more widespread than most people realize.
- Lead: old paint, contaminated soil, aging water infrastructure. No safe level of exposure.
- Mercury: certain fish, some dental amalgam fillings, industrial air pollution.
- Cadmium: cigarette smoke, vaping, food grown in contaminated soil.
- Arsenic: some drinking water, rice and rice-based foods, older agricultural soil.
- Aluminium: cookware, food packaging, some antiperspirants, food additives.
- Copper: copper plumbing, some cookware, certain medications — one of the most commonly accumulated metals in excess.
Beyond the traditional heavy metals, PFAS — so-called forever chemicals — have been found in the blood of virtually every person tested in developed countries. Microplastics, now detected in human blood, lung tissue, and arterial plaque, represent a further category of persistent burden.
The issues include disruption to the central and peripheral nervous system, impairment of kidney and liver function, hormonal disruption, immune system suppression, and compounding of the body’s overall toxic load and acidity.
“Toxic metals harm the cells of the body whereas the invading microbes — including mould — thrive in a heavy metal environment.”
— Dr. Dietrich Klinghardt, MD PhD
Children are particularly vulnerable. Research by the Environmental Working Group has shown that children are born already carrying industrial chemicals, pesticides, and heavy metals passed from mother to child before birth.
The PES Detox Foot Spa supports the body’s own natural detoxification pathways — giving the body a better environment in which to do what it is already trying to do.