Bad for your health: 5 poisonous minerals [Facts]
DEC 19, 2020 AT 05:51 AM
Arsenopyrite – fool’s gold
“Fool’s gold” is the common name given to this stone, as it was often mistaken for gold, and people were poisoned by its vapor when working with it. If you heat the stone, it gives off poisonous gases such as arsenic and iron sulfide, which together smell like garlic. If you are not sure what kind of stone you are dealing with, just bash it with a hammer. Does it smell of garlic? Then stay away!
When a person is poisoned by arsenic, the usual symptoms are stomach pains, violent diarrhea, vomiting, and depression of the central nervous system.
Orpiment – arsenic stone
What can be worse than arsenic? Orpiment is probably the only stone in the world that can truly be called “arsenic stone.” The ancient Chinese used orpiment for the same purpose as cinnabar, and the consequences were terrible!
Acute poisoning from arsenic causes vomiting, violent diarrhea, stomach pains, and depression of the central nervous system.
Stibnite – silver arrows
Stibnite is a beautiful mineral. It looks like a bunch of silver arrows or swords pointing in different directions. In ancient times, these big, shiny crystals were used to make wonderful bowls. The silver arrows of the poisonous stibnite are usually mined in Japan, and they can be up to 30 centimeters long! By the way, these crystals contain antimony which causes severe poisoning when it comes into contact with your skin.
Antimony is toxic. When it is deposited in the thyroid gland, it can cause an endemic goiter. But in the gastrointestinal tract, antimony doesn’t cause much harm.
Chalcanthite – the flower
Even so much as licking a little piece of this stone can cause poisoning. There have been many cases of scientists licking the stone in order to detect salty minerals among its components.
The main component of chalcanthite is copper sulfate. This can cause severe eye irritation. A large amount of copper sulfate in your food will cause nausea, vomiting, and damage to blood cells, the liver, and kidneys. Extreme exposure can lead to death.
Torburnite – hell stone
Torburnite is called “hell stone” because it combines copper, phosphorus, water, and uranium. But beware: it’s beautiful. Anyone can come into contact with this mineral through the use of granite in decoration, so you should avoid using granite with bright green pieces in it.
Torburnite is extremely radioactive. Uranium can affect all our organs if it gets into the body. First of all, the kidneys are affected, and this can be detected through protein and sugar in the urine. Chronic poisoning can also lead to problems with blood formation and failure of the nervous system.