Hello there!

This is a question for Mrs. D. and any others knowledgable in heavy metals testing.

Four years ago, my doctor at that time had me do a series of heavy metals test through "Doctors Data".

The test was a provoked six-hour test using oral DMSA.

Since that time, I have come to realize that the test is completely bogus!

The reference range is based on un-provoked testing, and when I first did an unprovoked test I was normal based on an "apples and apples" comparision.

The testing becomes bogus, however, when I then took oral DMSA, which artifically leached Mercury, lead, ect. into my urine. Of course, I then tested very high on Mercury because you are now comparing provoked urine vs. an unprovoked reference range that it is now being compared against (apples vs oranges).

From what I have read on the internet in places like "Quackwatch" this trickery is well known.

All this being said, how can one actually get an accurate test for Mercury (or does such a test even exist)?

Mercury is hard to measure because it is stored in the body:

http://labtestsonline.org/understand...rcury/tab/test

Some people do hair testing because of this. But even then
labs tend to vary. Some are good and some less so.

Mrs D, I asked this question because elsewhere you had asked another poster if they had gotten heavy metal testing. I would love to have an accurate one if I only knew where to go for it.

Thoughts?

You could check with an environmental physician in your area, or a holistic one.

Other heavy metals, include lead, cadmium, and arsenic.

Here is a good overview:
http://www.lef.org/protocols/prtcl-156.shtml

This link will help you find an environmental doctor, if your doctor doesn't do heavy metal testing:

http://www.aaemonline.org/AboutUS.html

On the top left is a search bar you can input your state to find one.

Holistic MDs are now fairly aware of testing like this. Call your local medical society or check the Yellow pages, as this is becoming a more common specialty.

Pretty much everyone will have some level of heavy metals in their body. You cannot avoid it. What's difficult to determine is... if what your body is storing, and where it's stored, is causing your problems.

For some, reducing the overall burden on the body provides health benefits. But no one will be able to remove 100% of it. And chelation therapy cannot target which organs to pull heavy metals from. That said, any drop in your heavy metal burden should be a good thing.

The heavy metal challenge is not really bogus but can be misleading or misused if you use the test results as the only criteria to move forward with chelation. Like Mrs. D said, you get can get your hair analyzed as well. Doctor's Data also does a red blood cell elements test. It looks at what's in your red blood cell. Both good and bad. It checks for minerals as well as toxic elements. This may give you a better understanding of what's in your tissues. Thinking being, if it's at toxic level in red blood cells, then there's a good chance you have too much in your body.

If you have any amalgam filling in your mouth, then it's not a good idea to do chelation therapy for mercury until you have them removed safely by a dentist who is experience in the process.

I don't a have good answer for you on this. It is controversial, in both the measuring of heavy metals and how to chelate effectively and safely. I personally would not rely on "quackwatch" for any unbiased opinion. There's a couple of these types of blogs out there whose sole purpose is to discredit alternative/complementary medicine.

I appreciate your feed back about Doctors Data. However, I do not agree that their 6-hour DMSA provoked test is accurate if they are using a non-provoked reference range for a normal test result.

Under those circumstances, everyone would show an artifically elevated Mercury reading as the DMSA temporarily leaches out stored Mercury into the urine.

If they wanted to create a truly accurate test, then they would have the normal test subjects (Mercury free) also take DMSA for 6 hours to establish the normal reference test range.

That is just common sense!

I would also not trust any other Doctors Data test given this is a firm that created and continues to promote this very questionable test. Again, common sense.

Unfortunately, you will not find a "mercury free" person on this planet. No one will every get mercury free. Babies are born with mercury in their system. The normal reference range would have to be zero in that there is really no "safe" level of mercury. It's not meant to be stored in our bodies.

My husband did a EDTA & DMPS challenge 24 hour urine toxic metal test. His mercury was within the reference range. The first baseline test, showed that none of the heavy metals out of range. With the challenge, only one heavy metal was very elevated. That was lead. There was an increase in the mercury, but it still remained in the reference range. Even a heavy metal within the reference range can be problematic for an individual. That's why all of this so controversial.

I assume your doctor did a 24 hour urine baseline test to compare against the challenge.

... for all parties interested in heavy metal testing I submit the following. Please draw your own conclusions:



http://quackwatch.com/01QuackeryRela...ine_toxic.html