1. Spot the symptoms
Cadmium usually appears as a byproduct of objects containing lead, copper or zinc, such as batteries, certain kinds of plastics, fertilizer and cigarettes.
It can be taken in by eating contaminated foods or by living and working near places with a high amount of cadmium, such as smelting plants or industrial factories. Over time, it can damage the lungs and kidneys and make the bones extremely fragile.
In cases with high amounts of poisoning, cadmium can case nausea, diarrhea, stomach pains and worse. There is no cure for cadmium poisoning. The best possible remedies are early detection and treating the symptoms. The sooner you can notice them, the better.
2. Get the victim away from the environment
Like other metals, cadmium often poisons the body slowly over time. The sooner you can remove cadmium from the victim's environment, the more quickly the damage will stop.
Refrain from smoking in the victim's environment; cigarette smoke is the number-one source of exposure to cadmium. Properly store any products containing cadmium--fertilized, batteries, metal products and window glaze--out of reach of children.
If you drink from well water, have it checked for cadmium levels and drink bottled water if you have any reason to suspect a prominent cadmium presence. A balanced diet containing plenty of iron, calcium, protein and zinc can help reduce cadmium levels in your system as well.
3. Conduct gastric lavage or induce vomiting
If the victim has swallowed high amounts of cadmium suddenly, then you may be able to stop the worst effects by acting quickly. You can induce vomiting to remove the bulk of it or take the victim to the hospital and ask them to conduct gastric lavage. This procedure inserts a hose into the stomach and cleanses it by flushing water or saline solution into it.
It should only be conducted by trained medical personnel in controlled environments and is most effective within one hour of taking the cadmium.
4. Avoid chelation therapy
With other types of poisoning such as arsenic or lead, you may want to undergo chelation therapy, which uses drugs to bond with and safely remove the poisons in your system.
This is not recommended with cadmium, however. Because of the way it bonds with chelation chemicals, cadmium can cause considerable damage to the kidneys and liver as it passes.
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