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Mercury and Your Body

Check out how mercury can affect the human body. Click on the different parts of the body to see what can happen when people are poisoned by mercury. How serious these health effects are may vary depending on how much mercury gets into your body — and how long you breathe it in.


Body

body
brain

Brain & Nervous
System

Mercury may cause damage to the nervous system, especially the brain. Brain damage from mercury poisoning can cause people to have:

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Trouble remembering things
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Difficulty sleeping
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Changes in mood, like feeling cranky, nervous, tired, or shy
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Numbness in the hands and feet
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Trembling (shaking)
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Problems with muscle coordination (tripping, dropping things, falling down)
ears

Ears

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Trouble hearing
Key:
  • clock Health effect caused by breathing in high levels of mercury vapors (fumes) over a short period of time
  • calenderHealth effect caused by breathing in lower levels of mercury vapors over a long period of time
 
USA.gov: The U.S. Government's Official Web PortalDepartment of Health and Human Services
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, 4770 Buford Hwy NE, Atlanta, GA 30341
Contact CDC: 800-232-4636 / TTY: 888-232-6348

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