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Copper (Cu)

Copper is a very common substance that occurs naturally in the environment and spreads through the environment through natural phenomena. Humans widely use copper. For instance it is applied in the industries and in agriculture. The production of copper has lifted over the last decades and due to this copper quantities in the environment have expanded.

Copper can be found in many kinds of food, in drinking water and in air. Because of that we absorb eminent quantities of copper each day by eating, drinking and breathing. The absorption of copper is necessary, because copper is a trace element that is essential for human health. Although humans can handle proportionally large concentrations of copper, too much copper can still cause eminent health problems.

Most copper compounds will settle and be bound to either water sediment or soil particles. Soluble copper compounds form the largest threat to human health. Usually water-soluble copper compounds occur in the environment after release through application in agriculture. 

Copper concentrations in air are usually quite low, so that exposure to copper through breathing is negligible. But people that live near smelters that process copper ore into metal do experience this kind of exposure.

People that live in houses that still have copper plumbing are exposed to higher levels of copper than most people, because copper is released into their drinking water through corrosion of pipes.

Occupational exposure to copper often occurs. In the work place environment copper contagion can lead to a flu-like condition known as metal fever. This condition will pass after two days and is caused by over sensitivity.

Long-term exposure to copper can cause irritation of the nose, mouth and eyes and it causes headaches, stomach-aches, dizziness, vomiting and diarrhoea. Intentionally high uptakes of copper may cause liver and kidney damage and even death. Whether copper is carcinogenic has not been determined yet.

There are scientific articles that indicate a link between long-term exposure to high concentrations of copper and a decline in intelligence with young adolescents. Whether this should be of concern is a topic for further investigation.

Industrial exposure to copper fumes, dusts, or mists may result in metal fume fever with atrophic changes in nasal mucous membranes. Chronic copper poisoning results in Wilson's Disease, characterized by a hepatic cirrhosis, brain damage, demyelination, renal disease, and copper deposition in the cornea.  

Sources :http://www.lenntech.com/periodic-chart.htm