Fiona's
Database

In some food additives.
In food cooked in aluminium pans or stored in aluminium foil.

Cigarette smoke, fireworks, table salt & baking powder;
aluminium cans;
antacids;
bleached flour;
mains water treatment (aluminium sulphate);
some food additives;
deodorants;
acid rain leaches aluminium out of the soil and into the ground water.

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Concentrated in the areas used for the atmospheric nuclear weapons tests conducted between 1945 and 1980, as well as at the sites of nuclear incidents, such as the Chernobyl disaster

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Fireworks, fire retardants;
used as an alloy with lead and tin;
in solders;
compounds used in matches

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Constitutes 0.934% by volume and 1.288% by mass of the Earth's atmosphere.

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High levels may be found in rice, as a result of water used in growing the crop, being contaminated with arsenic from arsenic based pesticides even though use may have been stopped many years ago.

Cigarette smoke, wood preservative; pesticide;
leather, termite treated lumber, rat poisoning, pesticides, herbicides, pigments.
Drinking water in areas where there are arsenic deposits (More than 140 million people worldwide and 4 million Americans chronically ingest arsenic in their drinking water).

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Fireworks, medical contrast media, paper products, jet fuel, pigments

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Light structural material;
beryllium oxide is used in ceramics, naturally found in tobacco;
some dental alloys.

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Used in cosmetics, pigments, and a few pharmaceuticals.

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Fiberglass (insulation), polymers, ceramics, fertilizer, insecticides, laundry detergent.

Arthritis, allergies, weak muscles, low testosterone, brain health.

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Flame retardants; some epilepsy drugs;
used in production of some fizzy drinks (soda) commercial bread making

A necessary cofactor in the biosynthesis of collagen IV.

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Cigarette smoke, e-cigarette vapour, galvanised iron; pesticides;
plastics;
fertilisers;
tyres;
plating;
component in alloys and solders;
PVC stabiliser, pigments, paints, pottery.
Cadmium from industrial waste can leach back into soil and water and isn't degraded and so enters the food chain.

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A relatively rare element estimated to average 3 parts per million in the Earth's crust.

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Dairy products, eggs, canned fish with bones (salmon, sardines), green leafy vegetables, nuts, seeds, tofu, thyme, oregano, dill, cinnamon.

Preparation of other metals;
calcium oxide important in chemical industry;
present in hard water;
fireworks;
used to reduce the radar signature of exhaust plumes in the SR71 Blackbird military aircraft.

Reduction in peak bone mass;
increased risk of osteoporosis in later life;
nerve sensitivity;
insomnia;
chronic depression;
synthesis and release of neurotransmitters

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Essential to all known living systems;
many biological and chemical compounds.
Graphite, charcoal, carbon steel, diamonds, propellant in fireworks, printing ink, laser print toner, wster purification, kitchen extractor hoods;
in medicine to absorb toxins, poisons, or gases from the digestive system.

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Table salt (as sodium chloride)

Manufacture of chemicals, plastics, paper, purification of water and sewage, fireworks.
Sodium chloride used to deice roads.

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Broccoli, grape juice (especially red), meat, whole grain products

Cigarette smoke, e-cigarette vapour, dental work;
metal plating, stainless steel;
hip replacements;
leather tanning;
paints;
dyes;
explosives;
cement.

Diabetes; hypoglycaemia; alcohol intolerance; irritability; weakness.

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Manufacture of tungsten carbide; hip replacements

Anaemia

Liver, seafood, oysters, nuts, seeds; some: whole grains, legumes

Copper water pipes (particularly in soft water areas);
some medicines;
pesticides;
fungicides;
brake linings;
wiring;
some contraceptive devices;
dental amalgam;
coins, algicides in hot tubs, fireworks.
Blood copper levels raised by the contraceptive pill.

Rheumatoid arthritis;
cardiovascular disease;
impaired immune system;
affects bone & blood formation in infants;
possible role in cardiovascular disease.

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Never found in nature as a free element, though it is found in many minerals, including xenotime, fergusonite, gadolinite, euxenite, polycrase, blomstrandine, monazite and bastnäsite.

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Always found in chemical combination with other elements.

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Not found in nature as a free element.
Many minerals contain europium, with the most important sources being bastnäsite, monazite and xenotime.

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Herbicides and fungicides;
some drugs;
inhaled anaesthetics; radioactive tracers for PET scanning;
fluoride toothpastes;
in some water naturally and added to some other water supplies.

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MRI contrast agent, iron & chromium production, nuclear reactor shielding.

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Some drugs; radionuclide scanning for malignant diseases;
used in the production of artificial gadolinium gallium garnet for jewellery.

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Used in electronic devices;
fibre-optics;
chemotherapy drugs;
fly ash of power plants fuelled from coal deposits that contain germanium.

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Dental work; jewellery;
gold salts for treating rheumatoid arthritis.

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Found in many zirconium minerals;
used in filaments and electrodes

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Balloons; used as a shielding gas in arc welding processes;
used as a protective gas in some industrial processes

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Humans typically consume about a milligram of holmium a year from plants.

Found in the minerals monazite and gadolinite;
in high-strength magnets

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Most abundant chemical substance in the Universe.

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Used in the semiconductor industry.

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Seaweed, grains, eggs, iodised salt

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Goitre, reduced growth

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Electronics-related applications; used in devices that must withstand extremely high temperature;
used for painting porcelain an intense black.

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Meat, seafood, nuts, beans, dark chocolate

Metal for building;
steel, toner for photocopiers and printers, food additive, stainless steel, cast iron cookware;
cosmetics (as iron oxide), fireworks

Anaemia;
fatigue;
cracking at corner of mouth;
recurrent mouth ulcers;
sore tongue;
poor hair growth; brittle nails;
generalized itching.

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Used in lighting and photography; concentration in the atmosphere is about 1 ppm.

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Numerous applications as catalysts, additives in glass, carbon arc lamps for studio lights and projectors, ignition elements in lighters and torches, electron cathodes, scintillators, GTAW electrodes, and other things.
Lanthanum carbonate is used as a phosphate binder in cases of renal failure.

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Present in all foods, generally at very low levels

Leaded petrol fumes;
old water pipes;
leaded paint;
lead plumbing;
solder;
improperly glazed pottery;
cigarette ash;
cigarette smoke, e-cigarette vapour, lipstick, pewter; lead crystal ware.

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Glass, ceramics, steel & aluminium production, lithium batteries, iron additives, fireworks

Depression, bipolar episodes.

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Very difficult to separate from other elements; few commercial uses

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Spinach, legumes, nuts, seeds, whole grains, peanut butter, avocado

Present in hard water;
alloys;
batteries;
fireworks;
glass;
ceramics;
fillers;
flocculating agents;
magnesium sulphate used in sugar refining.
Indian coins.

Muscle dysfunction;
irritability & tension;
fatigue;
premenstrual syndrome;
apathy

Grains, legumes, seeds, nuts, leafy vegetables, tea, coffee.

Cigarette smoke, e-cigarette vapour, textile bleaching, glass manufacture, fertilizers, compounds used in unleaded petrol and pesticides, pottery glazes. US dollar coin.

Joint pains;
dizziness; schizophrenia.

Fish

Cigarette smoke, dental amalgam;
pesticides;
fungicides;
cystitis from coalburning power stations, contaminated fish, vaccines, volcanic emissions, vaccines

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Legumes, whole grains, nuts

Compounds used in lubricants.

Irritability;
irregular heart beat;
dental caries;
male sexual impotence;
cancer of the oesophagus, works as an antioxidant.

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In powerful permanent magnets; used in China as fertiliser.

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Used in vacuum tubes, highvoltage indicators, lightning arresters, wave meter tubes, television tubes, and helium– neon lasers.

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Present naturally in foods; average diet supplies 300-600 μg of nickel to the human body per day.

Cigarette smoke, e-cigarette vapour, stainless steel;
water boiled in a kettle with an element;
clasps;
jewellery;
spectacles;
buckles;
keys;
coins;
diesel fumes;
can be in flour because of milling;
a catalyst for hydrogenating vegetable oils.

May activate certain enzymes and play a role in stabilizing chromosomal material in cell nuclei but at the moment no known diseases are associated with a nickel deficiency.

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Used in high-grade structural steel.

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Occurs in all organisms, primarily in amino acids (and thus proteins), in the nucleic acids (DNA and RNA) and in the energy transfer molecule adenosine triphosphate.

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Often alloyed with other metals for high-wear applications (e.g. the tips of fountain pens, instrument pivots, and electrical contacts, record styli).

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By mass, the third-most abundant element in the universe.
Used in cellular respiration and many major classes of organic molecules in living organisms contain oxygen, such as proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, and fat.

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Road dust from catalytic converters; dental work;
electrical components

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Red meat, dairy foods, fish, poultry, bread, rice, oats.

Fireworks

Debility;
loss of appetite;
weakness;
bone pain;
tingling sensations;
tremor;
irritability

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Jewellery, dental fillings, pacemakers, tobacco, road dust from catalytic converters, LCDs, chemotherapy agents; high quality glassware

Platinum compounds have anti-tumour activity

Sweet potato, tomato, potato, beans, lentils, dairy products, seafood, banana, prune, carrot, orange

Fireworks

Hypokalaemia;
can be caused by diarrhoea, medications like furosemide and steroids, dialysis, diabetes insipidus, hyperaldosteronism, hypomagnesemia, and shortage in the diet

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A yellow-orange "Praseodymium Yellow" stain for ceramics.

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Used in nuclear medicine.

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Used in parts for jet engines

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Road dust from catalytic converters; white gold often plated with rhodium to improve its appearance and sterling silver is also for tarnish resistance.

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NONDIET

Fireworks

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Used in electrical contacts;
being actively researched for solar energy technologies.

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Used in magnets in small motors, headphones, and high-end magnetic pickups for guitars and related musical instruments.
Radioactive isotope samarium-153 is drug used in the treatment of lung cancer, prostate cancer, breast cancer and osteosarcoma

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Used in high-end sports goods (baseball bats, bicycle frames and components, and Lacrosse sticks).
Some Smith & Wesson semi-automatic pistols and revolvers have frames of scandium alloy.
Used to strengthen aluminium alloys

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Brazil nuts, seafoods, organ meats, meats, grains, dairy products, eggs

Cigarette smoke, antidandruff shampoos;
steel and glass additive.

Possible links with some forms of cancer & development of coronary heart disease;
premature ageing.

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Granite dust;
sand, cement, porcelain, semiconductor electronics;
ingredient in some toothpastes.

Poor skin, nails, hair and bone density.
Needed for synthesis of elastin and collagen, of which the aorta contains the greatest quantity in the human body.

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Dental amalgam;
jewellery;
food colouring (E174);
electrical components;
silver compounds used in photography.

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As sodium chloride (salt);
monosodium glutamate (MSG), sodium nitrite, sodium saccharin, baking soda (sodium bicarbonate), and sodium benzoate

Compounds used to produce glass, paper, soap, fireworks, and textiles; salt, soda ash, baking soda, caustic soda, sodium nitrate, di- and trisodium phosphates, sodium thiosulfate and borax

Muscle cramps;
fatigue;
nausea.
(Sodium is an essential mineral that regulates blood volume, blood pressure, osmotic equilibrium and pH.)

Spices, whole grains, leafy green vegetables such as spinach and kale, seafood, root vegetables like carrots and parsnips, and legumes like beans, lentils and peas.

Fireworks. Glass for colour television cathode ray tubes.

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Natural gas, petroleum, fertilizer, insecticides, fireworks, matches, wood pulping, rubber vulcanisation, products for treating acne, dandruff, psoriasis etc.

Detoxification, proper insulin function, Vitamins B1 and B7 activation, mitochondrial function.

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Production of electronic components, mainly capacitors and some highpower resistors.

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In copper and steel alloys.

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Used in fluorescent lamps and television and monitor cathode ray tubes.

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Found in association with potassium-based minerals in clays, soils, and granites;
byproduct of zinc & lead production;
some glass;
jewellery;
dyes;
pigments;
electronics;
recreational drug contaminant.

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Widely used in laser technology in military applications, medicine, and meteorology.

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Dental amalgam;
canning;
solder in iron & copper pipes;
compounds used in fungicides and glass coatings.

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Dental work;
surgical metal in hip replacements etc.;
jewellery;
sunscreen, fireworks, filler in many prescription and OTC medicines, cosmetics (as titanium dioxide)

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Used to produce tungsten carbide, alloys and steel.

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Nuclear power plants and weapons.

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Some mineral water springs.

Catalytic converters;
chemical catalyst.

Sugar cravings, inability to lose weight.

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Found in the Earth's atmosphere in trace amounts.
Used in flash lamps, arc lamps, and as a general anaesthetic

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Used in nuclear medicine and atomic clocks

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Red component of colour television cathode ray tubes;
synthetic garnets;
in some drugs to treat cancer

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Oysters, red meat, poultry, nuts, whole grains, dairy products

Cigarette smoke, galvanised iron;
brass;
solder;
diecasting;
tires;
zinc oxide is used in paints, rubber, textiles, fireworks, sunscreens, cosmetics and plastics.

Persistent leg ulcers & pressure sores;
red, greasy skin on face; skin problems, poor hair growth;
dandruff;
night blindness;
brittle nails;
white spots on nails