Nutritional Balancing and Nickel (some case studies)

Nickel is a metal that doesn't get a lot of attention when we consider our health and well being. That is a shame as it can and does, significantly affect our health and today I'll be illustrating this with three case studies. As with all case studies they can't be used as proof of anything but when you see the problem often enough you start to put one and one together and realise that there is a problem. Nickel is toxic and in high amounts works as any toxic metal does; by blocking the ability of the required nutrients or by replacing the required nutrient. In both situations the end result is loss of normal function.

Cancer 

A 22 year old female diagnosed with cervical cancer presents on her first hair mineral analysis with a nickel level of 1.316mg% when normal is 0.1mg%. I've never seen a level this high.  She is also showing elevated levels of the toxic metals lead, arsenic and aluminium, and elevation of manganese at 0.301 when normal is 0.04mg%. She is also showing a fast oxidation or what is also known as a "stress response" which would make sense when diagnosed with cancer and showing a metal profile such as this. Nickel is known to be associated with cancer. The key word is associated as there is no way to know in this case if the nickel was the cause of the cancer or is just associated with it. Regardless it is clear there is a toxiciy problem with nickel that needs to be dealt with if this woman is to recover and thrive.

Anxiety and Tics.

A 13 year old boy shows a level of nickel at 0.360mg% (normal 0.1mg%) almost four times normal. Copper is also significantly elevated at 30.6mg% when normal is 2.5mg% and there is lead, cadmium and aluminium showing. Six months later the nickel has dropped to normal levels, the copper dropped to 5.6mg% and the lead dropped to 0.239mg% all great improvements while on a nutritional balancing program. The cadmium disappeared altogether. Symptom wise the boy dramatically improved with virtually all tics disappearing along with his anxiety. He was able to properly function at school as well as home, and has maintained these gains over subsequent hair analysis. Whether these improvements were from the nickel changes, the copper or any other factor is difficult to say but a nutritional balancing program has been successful in addressing the underlying issues.

Asperger's.

A first test did not show any significant nickel at 0.016mg%.  A second test, 5 months later, showed a significant level of nickel at 0.734mg%. What is fascinating though is that this also corresponded to a fast (stress response) oxidation rate and his potassium as a result shot up to 45mg% from 8mg%.

On a third test his nickel dropped down to 0.297mg% and his stress response also disappeared as his potassium dropped to normal at 10mg%.

On a fourth test his nickel shot back up again to 0.419mg% and his potassium (stress response) also shot back up to 103mg% which is 10 times the normal. The takeaway from this case study is the effect that the nickel is having on the body by creating a stressful environment. This cannot be maintained indefinitely without consequences to the bodies tissues and well being

So where is this nickel coming from? In our last case we know it is coming from the wires that have been used to repair his sternum after open heart surgery. In the first case it is unknown but potentially linked to cleaning supplies. In our teenager it is unknown but possibly congenital. The most common source of nickel is from dental work in some crowns and dental wires. It can occasionally be found in jewellery, alcohol, hydrogenated oils and in contaminated well or bore water.

Regardless of the source, the point of this blog is to draw attention to an issue that is rarely addressed. Nickel toxicity is an issue. However it is simply an example of a larger issue and that is toxicity in general. In our modern industrial world we need to be aware of the harm we are causing along the way and nickel is a great example of this.

Nutritional Balancing is a time proven way to address exposure and maximize elimination to best manage our toxic environment.  For more information please contact us