itai-itai disease was a form of poisoning associated with ingestion of
cadmium Cadmium
title: Itai-itai disease text: built a basin to store the mining waste water before leading it into the river. This proved ineffective, and many had already been sickened. The causes of the poisoning were not well understood and, up to 1946, it was thought to be simply a regional disease or a type of bacterial infection. Medical tests started in the 1940s and 1950s, searching for the cause of the disease. Initially, it was expected to be lead poisoning due to the lead mining upstream. Only in 1955 did Dr. Hagino and his colleagues suspect cadmium as the cause of the disease. Toyama Prefecture title: Itai-itai disease text: Itai-itai disease One of the main effects of cadmium poisoning is weak and brittle bones. Spinal and leg pain is common, and a waddling gait often develops due to bone deformities caused by the cadmium. The pain eventually becomes debilitating, with fractures becoming more common as the bone weakens. Other complications include coughing, anemia, and kidney failure, leading to death. A marked prevalence in older, postmenopausal women has been observed. The cause of this phenomenon is not fully understood, and is currently under investigation. Current research has pointed to general malnourishment, as well as poor calcium metabolism relating to the title: Itai-itai disease text: On 17 March 2012, officials concluded the cleanup project of the cadmium-polluted areas in the Jinzū River basin. Eight-hundred and sixty-three hectares of topsoil had been replaced since the cleanup began in 1979 at a total cost of ¥40.7 billion. The project had been financed by the Japanese national government, Mitsui Mining, and the Gifu and Toyama prefectural governments. Itai-itai disease One of the main effects of cadmium poisoning is weak and brittle bones. Spinal and leg pain is common, and a waddling gait often develops due to bone deformities caused by the cadmium. The pain eventually becomes debilitating, with title: Itai-itai disease text: fields, but also for drinking water, washing, fishing, and other uses by downstream populations. Due to the cadmium poisoning, the fish in the river started to die, and the rice irrigated with river water did not grow well. The cadmium and other heavy metals accumulated at the bottom of the river and in the water of the river. This water was then used to irrigate the rice fields. The rice absorbed heavy metals, especially the cadmium. The cadmium accumulated in the people eating contaminated rice. When the population complained to Mitsui Mining & Smelting Co. about this pollution, the company title: Itai-itai disease text: I, as well as new mining technologies from Europe, increased the output of the mines, putting the Kamioka Mines in Toyama among the world's top mines. Production increased even more before World War II. Starting in 1910 and continuing through 1945, cadmium was released in significant quantities by mining operations, and the disease first appeared around 1912. Prior to World War II, the mining, controlled by the Mitsui Mining & Smelting Co., Ltd., increased to satisfy the wartime demand. This subsequently increased the pollution of the Jinzū River and its tributaries. The river was used mainly for irrigation of rice