A Review of Methylmercury and Child Development

The Scientific Paper:

G. J. Myers, P. W. Davidson, and C. F. Shamlaye. Neurotoxicology. Vol. 19, No. 2, pp. 313-328. 1998.

Review This Scientific Paper’s Abstract:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=
PubMed&list_uids=9553968&dopt=Abstract

The Purpose of this Study:
To attempt to determine the effect(s) of methylmercury on children by examining their methylmercury exposure(s) in the womb and after being born. These methylmercury exposures include a very few, infamous, accidental poisoning episodes where children show signs of being poisoned by mercury — and also studies of fish-eating populations where the children show no signs of being poisoned by mercury.

Some Background, Methods, Results, Caveats, and Other Select Points:

• This peer-reviewed, scientific paper was published in 1998.
• This paper reviews methylmercury exposure studies from Sweden, Minamata Japan, Niigata Japan, New Mexico, and Iraq. These scientists then review methylmercury clinical studies from New Zealand, Canada, Peru, Republic of Seychelles, and the Faroe Islands.
• These methylmercury exposure studies include those with acute, severe methylmercury exposures with detectable signs of poisoning — and also clinical studies without any detectable signs of methylmercury poisoning with greatly reduced methylmercury exposures over longer periods of time.
• These reviewed studies range in size from a few exposed people to 11,000 people.
• These scientists next list and discuss “Unresolved Issues” that include:
  1. What are the most sensitive tests to detect the neurological and developmental bad effects of methylmercury in people?
  2. At what level does methylmercury exposure have detectable neurological and developmental bad effects in people?
  3. What is the best way to measure methylmercury exposure in people?
  4. Are the bad effects of methylmercury exposure different if the source of the methylmercury is fish which is not overtly polluted?
  5. Are there significant differences between the effects of methylmercury exposure from fish when the exposure happens in the womb rather than after the child is born?
  6. Could eating small amounts of methylmercury over long periods of time produce changes in people that compensate for any methylmercury bad effects?
  7. Could the effects of mercury vapor from certain types of dental fillings influence the outcome of methylmercury exposure in people? and
  8. What are the bad effects to the human brain and/or nervous system of methylmercury exposures from eating fish?

A Bottom Line:
In 1998, it was not scientifically clear whether methylmercury exposures from a high-fish diet causes bad effects on children’s developing brains and/or nervous systems.

Find This Scientific Paper for Your Review:
A Review of Methylmercury and Child Development. Neurotoxicology. Vol. 19, No. 2, pp. 313-328. 1998.