Mercury use rings alarms

LAWRENCE -- One of Earth's most toxic elements is being used as a tonic and spiritual salve by an alarming number of the city's Latino residents who believe it holds magical powers, according to state local health officials who want the practice stopped.

Through sales in small city stores catering to secretive Caribbean religions, mercury is being marketed as medicine and a good-luck charm that can cure a stomachache or protect a newborn baby. A recent state-funded study showed mercury, known in these religions as Azogue, is being rubbed, sprinkled, and swallowed by many, unaware that it's more poisonous than lead paint.

"It has magical properties to it. Anybody who has ever handled mercury has been enchanted with it," said Gretchen Latowsky of John Snow Inc., a Boston-based nonprofit environmental health group. "Mercury is cool to the touch; it'll break up into little droplets. But at the same time it's extremely dangerous."

It's the latter message Latowsky is trying to get out after a summer survey found some 40 percent of Lawrence Latinos knew about Azogue or used it themselves. Survey respondents used Azogue for good luck and good health, to attract a lover, keep evil spirits away, cure a stomachache and improve their moves on the dance floor.

It is seen as something of a spiritual panacea based in the religious roots of Santeria, Espiritismo and Voodoo, brought to Lawrence by Haitian, Dominican and Brazilian immigrants. As in many religions, these faithful keep their beliefs to themselves, and Azogue is one of Lawrence's best-kept secrets.

"This is a religious practice," said Doris Anziani, a coordinator of Casa de Salud, a Lawrence-based volunteer group that conducted the survey with Latowsky. "It's like a black magic and people make fun of it. If people make witchcraft, do you think they are going to admit it? They are ashamed."

With such shame comes silence. But as the volunteers fanned out across the city with surveys, reports trickled in. Of 898 respondents questioned, 91 swallowed mercury in a drink, 143 applied it to their skin, 152 burned it in candles, 108 sprinkled it around their baby's crib.

One woman reportedly rubbed mercury on her arthritic knuckles hoping it would help. A Dominican baseball player who moved to Lawrence with major league aspirations rubbed it on his pitching arm. Several respondents said they rubbed it on their hips so they could dance better, according to the survey.

"Most people know the product as Azogue, but they didn't know that this was mercury," said Anziani. "They were very surprised that the substances they were using to spell out bad spirits was contaminating their body."

The ill effects of mercury poisoning are legion. It evaporates into the air and can be absorbed by the skin.

In infants and developing fetuses it can produce permanent neurological symptoms similar to autism. It's a cumulative toxin that builds up in the body and never leaves. It can cross the blood brain barrier and lodges permanently in the central nervous system.

Federal safe drinking water standards suggest anything over two parts of mercury per billion parts of water is unhealthy. Latowsky's study estimates a minimum of 6.8 pounds of mercury has been released into the community through Azogue use.

That's enough mercury to contaminate 485 million gallons of drinking water according to those federal standards. Yet for many Lawrencians, mercury is a household item.

"What we're afraid of is so many people use it that a lot of apartments may be badly contaminated," said Anziani.

Latowsky and others say the mercury is being sold in several of the city's Botanicas -- stores that cater to residents who practice a Christianized version of the island religions. They sell candles, herbal medicines, prayer books and, according to Latowsky and others, mercury in various containers including gelatin capsules costing $5 to $10 each.

Anziani is teaming back up with Latowsky, seeking federal money to launch an informational campaign. They are recruiting help from the Latin Chamber of Commerce and local Latino organizations to get the users and sellers of Azogue to stop.

Church leaders are being asked to help with the mercury poisoning problem they knew nothing about.

"Never heard of it, not at all," said the Rev. Gorge Reyes, associate pastor at St. Mary's Church in Lawrence. "And I even took a course on the religious practices of the Caribbean Islands."

The use of such materials is frowned upon by Reyes and others who minister to almost entirely Latino congregations. And that may explain the secrecy behind Azogue, they say.

In American culture, such religious practices are often seen as black magic and not piety, so they are done at home by people reluctant to share their beliefs with their neighbors or even their priests.

Santeria, Espiritismo and Voodoo are a blend of Christianity and paganism brought in slave ships 200 years ago to Latin America. Followers revere some Catholic saints as gods and see supernatural powers in objects others deem as worthless.

"It's much like Italians would use garlic to ward off evil spirits," said the Rev. Paul McManus, pastor at Asuncion de la Virgen Maria. McManus said his congregation is entirely Latino, but he also had never heard of Azogue. Its use only became more public when Latowsky was working with community leaders to study the high incidence of asthma in Lawrence children.

The subject of mercury being emitted by incinerators in Haverhill and North Andover prompted one volunteer to mention Azogue. A year later, Latowsky's group landed a state grant to recruit local volunteers to circulate surveys asking Latinos about their use of the product.

Since the survey results, volunteers have been going to the Botanicas and convincing the owners not to sell Azogue with some success. However, they fear the Botanicas are still selling it to select customers.

"We did visit the Botanicas," said Anziani. "Some said they were not selling it, but we know that some of them still are."

Help may be coming from higher up as city and state officials are showing added interest in the problem. Lawrence's head of Inspectional Services, Caroline Ganley, said she wants to learn the extent of Azogue use, and the state's Department of Public Health is reviewing the results of Latowsky's survey.

"We're determining if the Department of Public Health needs to start outreach educational efforts," said Health Department spokeswoman Roseanne Pawelek. "Obviously, if the department feels the need, we'll target those communities, and that very well might involve Lawrence."

As pressure mounts to stop selling Azogue, alternative herbal medicines are becoming more popular. But Latowsky and Anziani fear a backlash from an unsympathetic public as their educational campaign to eliminate Azogue gets underway.

Both women emphasized they are not critical of the religions; they just want to educate followers about the dangers of Azogue. "We don't want to drive the practice underground," said Latowsky. "People have used it, and if you use something and find out later that it's unhealthy you don't want to admit it."

"It's very delicate; people's feelings will be hurt," said Anziani. "This is a belief for them. People have been practicing this for years. It's like if you were Catholic and someone told you that is a bad thing to do. ... It's a very delicate topic."

Staff writer Tim Wacker may be contacted by phone at (978) 946-2000, or by e-mail at twacker@eagletribune.com.

We used to play with liquid mercury metal when I was a kid. Big 5-lb jars of it.

My impression is that it is essentially harmless unless heated (fumes). You don't want to swallow it.

Otherwise, much ado about nothing.

If they caught kids making "silver pennies" with mercury there would be a full-scale haz-mat evacuation.

Should have seen my basement, circa 1965.

--Boris

I would like to take a moment to ask for donations.

It should be clear to all conservatives by now that the left intends to demonize us. They don't just disagree with us, they hate us. And worse, they want to get other people to hate us.

Places like Free Republic drive the left batty.

Please donate. Thanks for your consideration.

"The ill effects of mercury poisoning are legion. It evaporates into the air and can be absorbed by the skin. "

Vapor pressure of mercury: 0.0017 torr at 25C.

Vapor pressure is the pressure exerted when a solid or liquid is in equilibrium with its own vapor.

_________________________________________________________________

                                   Vapor pressure   Temp.
Material                             (mm of Hg)    (deg. C)  Ref.

_________________________________________________________________

Mercury                                  0.0014    22     69

                                         0.0050    38     69

                                         0.26     100     69

A torr is a millimeter of mercury, so the vapor pressure of mercury at 25 C (77 F) is 0.0017/760 = 0.000002237 pounds per square inch, versus 14.7 psia for atmospheric pressure. Mercury's vapor pressure is 0.00001522% of atmospheric pressure.

--Boris

The mercury from a "silver penny" my brother showed me how to make was absorbed by my skin when I put it in my pocket. The ensuing illness was very severe, and I have had neurological problems ever since. Don't pooh-pooh mercury's toxicity. Very bad stuff.

"The mercury from a "silver penny" my brother showed me how to make was absorbed by my skin when I put it in my pocket. The ensuing illness was very severe, and I have had neurological problems ever since. Don't pooh-pooh mercury's toxicity. Very bad stuff."

Some people have anaphylactic reactions to talcum powder, latex, peanuts...

--Boris

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.