Heavy Metals

Also Known As

Toxic Metals

Formal Name

Heavy Metals Panel

This article was last reviewed on

April 17, 2020.

This article waslast modified on April 17, 2020.

At a Glance

Why Get Tested?

To screen for, detect, and monitor excessive exposure to specific heavy metals

When To Get Tested?

Periodically when you work with heavy metals, or when a healthcare practitioner suspects that you may have been exposed to one or more heavy metals

Sample Required?

A blood sample drawn from a vein in your arm or a 24-hour urine sample; rarely, a hair or nail sample, tissue sample, or other body fluid sample

Test Preparation Needed?

You should not eat seafood for 48 hours before sample collection. If you have had a procedure in which either gadolinium- or iodine-containing contrast media has been administered, wait 96 hours before sample collection.

What is being tested?

A heavy metals panel is a group of tests that detects and measures specific potentially toxic metals in the blood, urine or, more rarely, in the hair or other body tissue or fluid. A laboratory may offer several different heavy metals panels as well as individual tests for metals. The most common combination includes:

Lead
Mercury
Arsenic

Other panels may include one or more additional metals, such as cadmium, copper, or zinc. A healthcare practitioner will select which metals to test based on what you may have been exposed to and your signs and symptoms.

The term "heavy metals" is loosely defined. It is related to the periodic table of elements and refers to a variety of elements with high density or metallic properties. These elements are found naturally throughout the environment and are also used by industries to manufacture a wide range of common products. Some of them, such as iron, copper, selenium, molybdenum, and zinc, are required in trace amounts by the body for normal function but can be toxic at higher levels.

Heavy Metals Poisoning

Significant concentrations of any of the heavy metals can be irritating or damaging to the body and can contaminate soil, air, food, and water, persisting indefinitely in the environment. Because they are a source of potential injury, the term "heavy metals" is frequently used interchangeably with the term "toxic metals."

The signs and symptoms that you may experience depend upon the type of metal, its form, the quantity, the length of exposure, the type of exposure, your age, and your general state of health. Some metals are much more toxic than others, and one form of a metal may be more harmful than other forms, such as an organic versus an inorganic metal compound. How you are exposed can influence the amount of metal absorbed and the part(s) of the body that are affected. For example, a metal that does little when it is held in your hand, or is only moderately harmful and poorly absorbed when swallowed, may be much more toxic and cause severe lung damage when its vapors are inhaled.

Severe acute exposure can cause damage and, in some cases, can be life-threatening, but moderate exposures over time should also be monitored. The body is able to process small amounts of heavy metals, but moderate to large quantities can accumulate in the kidneys, liver, bones and brain. Some metals are considered carcinogenic – they increase the risk of developing cancer – and some can affect the body's ability to produce red and white blood cells. Fetuses and young children are at the highest risk because exposures to low or moderate concentrations can affect physical and mental development and can permanently damage the organs and brain. Many of the metals can be passed from the mother to the fetus, and some can be passed to the infant in breast milk.

How is the sample collected for testing?

Heavy metal testing is usually performed on a blood sample obtained by inserting a needle into a vein in the arm or on a 24-hour urine collection. Special metal-free blood or acid-washed urine containers are used to collect the sample to lower the risk of sample contamination by any outside sources of metal.

Urine and blood can both be used for heavy metal testing, but they do not necessarily test for the same forms of a metal. For instance, methylmercury – an organic highly toxic form of mercury found in fish – can be detected in the blood but not in urine. Urine is the preferred sample for measuring inorganic forms of mercury and for measuring arsenic. For lead, blood more accurately correlates with adverse health effects than other fluids or tissues.

Hair and fingernail analysis can give an indication of exposure that has occurred over time or in the past but does not show recent exposures. Independently, they are not to be used to determine exposure. Blood and urine will reflect exposures that are long-term (chronic) or that have happened in the last few days.

In rare cases, a biopsy is performed to obtain a tissue sample for testing.

Is any test preparation needed to ensure the quality of the sample?

Refrain from eating seafood 48 hours before sample collection. If you have had a procedure in which either gadolinium- or iodine-containing contrast media has been administered, wait 96 hours before sample collection. For potential industrial exposure, optimal monitoring should be performed with samples collected at the end of the work week.

You may be able to find your test results on your laboratory's website or patient portal. However, you are currently at Lab Tests Online. You may have been directed here by your lab's website in order to provide you with background information about the test(s) you had performed. You will need to return to your lab's website or portal, or contact your healthcare practitioner in order to obtain your test results.

Lab Tests Online is an award-winning patient education website offering information on laboratory tests. The content on the site, which has been reviewed by laboratory scientists and other medical professionals, provides general explanations of what results might mean for each test listed on the site, such as what a high or low value might suggest to your healthcare practitioner about your health or medical condition.

The reference ranges for your tests can be found on your laboratory report. They are typically found to the right of your results.

If you do not have your lab report, consult your healthcare provider or the laboratory that performed the test(s) to obtain the reference range.

Laboratory test results are not meaningful by themselves. Their meaning comes from comparison to reference ranges. Reference ranges are the values expected for a healthy person. They are sometimes called "normal" values. By comparing your test results with reference values, you and your healthcare provider can see if any of your test results fall outside the range of expected values. Values that are outside expected ranges can provide clues to help identify possible conditions or diseases.

While accuracy of laboratory testing has significantly evolved over the past few decades, some lab-to-lab variability can occur due to differences in testing equipment, chemical reagents, and techniques. This is a reason why so few reference ranges are provided on this site. It is important to know that you must use the range supplied by the laboratory that performed your test to evaluate whether your results are "within normal limits."

For more information, please read the article Reference Ranges and What They Mean.

Common Questions

How is the test used?
Heavy metals testing is used to:

Screen for or to diagnose heavy metal poisoning in those who may have been acutely or chronically exposed to one or more heavy metals

Guide management and treatment of heavy metal poisoning

Monitor excessive metal concentrations in those who work with various heavy metals; such occupations include construction work, mining, radiator repair shops, and firing ranges.

Monitor the effectiveness of chelation therapy, a treatment to rid the body of high amounts of a heavy metal

As mentioned above, your healthcare practitioner may order the metals panel that corresponds to your occupation, hobby, suspected exposure, and/or clinical symptoms. Alternatively, if your healthcare practitioner suspects that you have been exposed to a specific metal, such as lead, your practitioner may order that specific test instead of, or in addition to, a panel. Lead is usually ordered by itself when screening for exposure, especially in children because of how susceptible they are to its effects. If clinically indicated, additional testing to aid in diagnosis may be desired including but not limited to kidney and liver function test, X-rays and electrocardiograms.
When is it ordered?
A heavy metals panel may be ordered when you have signs and symptoms and/or your healthcare practitioner suspects that you have been acutely or chronically exposed to one or more heavy metals. It may be ordered periodically when you are treated for heavy metal poisoning.

Signs and symptoms of heavy metal exposure will vary in type and severity depending on the type and quantity of metal involved. Early symptoms of poisoning can be missed because they are often non-specific. Excessive exposure and damage to several different organs can occur even if you have no, few, or nonspecific symptoms. Some signs and symptoms of metal poisoning may include:

Abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea

Nervous system symptoms such as numbness, tingling of hands and feet, weakness

Anemia

Kidney damage

Liver damage

In the lungs – irritation, fluid accumulation (edema)

Brain dysfunction, memory loss

Mees lines (horizontal lines on nails)

Changes in behavior

Malformed bones in children, weakened bones

Developmental delays in children

In pregnant women – miscarriage, premature labor

You may also be monitored periodically when you may be exposed to metals in the workplace. Frequency of monitoring will depend on level of initial exposure, presence or absence of ongoing exposure, and current intervention. Safety measures minimize risk to employees and help address problems when they are identified. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulates the use and monitoring of several toxic metals that may be found on the job. If excessive concentrations are detected, affected persons are monitored and steps are taken to reduce their exposure.
What does the test result mean?

Care must be taken in the interpretation of heavy metals tests. Your healthcare practitioner will interpret your results in the context of factors such as your risk of exposure, medical history, signs and symptoms, and physical exam.

A low level of a heavy metal in the blood does not necessarily mean that excessive exposure has not occurred. Heavy metals do not stay in the blood and will not be present in the urine for extended periods of time. Lead, for instance, moves from the blood into the body's organs and over time is incorporated into the bones. If you were chronically exposed to lead, then you might have lead in your blood, urine, organs, and bones.

Very low levels of many heavy metals may be present in the blood and urine of apparently healthy people because these metals are present throughout our environment. Recommendations for safe levels of heavy metals depend on your age and may change over time as more information about their safety becomes available.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), for example, scientists found measurable mercury in over 8,000 participants in a study conducted in 2004. The CDC concluded that both blood and urine levels of mercury tend to increase with age. Detecting a measurable amount of mercury in blood or urine does not imply that levels of mercury cause an adverse health effect. Monitoring studies on mercury levels in the body provide physicians and public health officials with reference values so that they can determine whether people have been exposed to higher levels of mercury than are found in the general population.

To learn more about minimal risk levels and/or health effects of a particular metal, visit the ToxFAQs™ section of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) website.
How long will it take to get the results of my test?

Heavy metal analysis is not done on a routine basis and is frequently performed at a reference laboratory, so the results are likely to take several days.
How is someone exposed to toxic metals?

Heavy metals can be absorbed through the skin, inhaled, or by eating or drinking contaminated food or liquids. You can be poisoned when the metals displace the essential elements in the body and begin to affect the normal function of various organs. Most people will never be sufficiently exposed to be harmed or require testing.

The majority of short-term and long-term exposures occur in the workplace, especially in industries that use metals to manufacture products; such as the cadmium, lead, and mercury used in batteries and the arsenic used in some pesticides. Exposures can also occur in agricultural workers, in people whose job it is to clean up contaminated environmental sites, in those who work with certain products such as auto mechanics working with car batteries, and in those with hobbies that involve the use of metals such as the lead used by stained glass artisans.

Pregnant women at risk of metal toxicity such as lead can pass metals to their developing babies (fetuses). This is because lead is able to cross the placenta. Also, lead can be passed to infants through breast milk. When mothers should and should not to breastfeed will depend on blood lead levels.

Most exposures to excessive concentrations in the general population are primarily due to increased levels of metals in food or water, products that they use, or soil contamination in or near the areas that they work and live.
How can I test my soil, water, or the paint on my house for heavy metals?

See the links under Related Content and explore the Environmental Protection Agency website. The EPA has information that can help you find a professional to evaluate your environment.
In addition to lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium and chromium, what are some other metals that may be tested?
Some metals that are tested less frequently in suspected toxicity include:

Aluminum

Beryllium

Cobalt

Copper

Iron

Manganese

Nickel

Platinum

Selenium

Silicon

Silver

Thallium
Is there anything else I should know?

Exposures to the same amounts and types of heavy metals will not necessarily lead to the same effects in different people because they absorb and eliminate metals at different rates. Those who have underlying health conditions may be more vulnerable than others to the same exposures.

Trace concentrations of heavy metals are monitored and minimized but are almost impossible to avoid altogether. For instance, naturally-occurring arsenic is a contaminant that can be found in some sources of drinking water throughout the world. Small amounts of mercury are found in fluorescent light bulbs and some thermometers. If these break, the mercury can be released. Methylmercury, an organic form of mercury that is produced by bacteria in water, can build up in fish over time. Concentrations vary regionally and with the size of the fish. The highest levels are typically found in bigger and older fish. In most cases, the benefits of eating fish outweigh the small risk of ingesting excess mercury. However, women who are pregnant may want to take extra precautions. The March of Dimes recommends that pregnant women avoid certain types of large fish during their pregnancy because of mercury's potential harm to the fetus.

Lead was once routinely used in paint, plumbing pipes, and as an additive in gasoline. In the U.S., these environmental sources of lead have decreased, but it can be present in the existing paint and plumbing of older homes. In Flint, Michigan, in 2015, for example, no corrosion control was used to prevent lead from entering the water when the town switched its water source from Detroit's water to the Flint River's water (on top of the fact that the river contained eight times as much chloride as Detroit's water). When water from the river flowed through those pipes, it ate away at the pipes, which caused lead to enter the water supply and was deemed unsafe to drink.

When lead house paint deteriorates, it creates lead chips and dust that can be stirred up with the movement of air and can find their way into the soil around the house. While anyone may be harmed by lead exposure, children are at the highest risk. They may eat paint chips, mouth painted surfaces, breath in lead dust, and play in contaminated soil.

In addition to lead, other heavy metals such as arsenic and cadmium have been found to contaminate some toys and jewelry.

All of the sources of heavy metal exposure in the air, water, food supply, and in the environment are controlled, regulated, and monitored by three governmental agencies and the medical community. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) evaluates the effects of exposures, regulates industrial emissions, and establishes maximum contaminant levels for heavy metals such as arsenic in drinking water. The Food and Drug Association (FDA) establishes limits for metals in food, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends testing young children for lead, especially for those who live in or routinely visit a house built before 1978.

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