The effects of arsenic on digestion - Part 1

Hormones and Enzymes - The Arsenic Series

Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for information and entertainment purposes only, and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult a medical professional or healthcare provider if you are seeking medical advice, diagnoses, or treatment.

During two years of research we have analysed many different ways arsenic affects the body. We now look in detail at the extent of the disruption it causes in the gut. The effects of arsenic on global food supplies are becoming more evident as we navigate the Covid era, and thus the effects on our digestive systems. Avoidance seems to be key to health.

The body is a finely tuned biological marvel. It’s inner workings continue to baffle and confuse scientists, as do the causes of disruption to the ballet of chemical and energetic transfer. Our greatest protection from the outside world is our skin, which is considered the largest organ. The dermis, epidermis and fat layers are only permeable by certain elements, by injury or by certain nanoparticles. The skin is largely impervious even to alpha particle radiation. Rashes appear often in relation to what is going on inside the body. High levels of internal toxins will promote reactions by the skin to external toxins. Recent increasingly widespread reactions to hair dyes is a good example of this process.

The mucus membranes in the gastrointestinal, respiratory, reproductive and urinary tracts act as internal barriers. If these were compromised, other systems of the body become compromised. In this article we will be looking at how key digestive enzymes and signalling hormones can be switched off by circulating and ingested arsenic, whilst others seem to remain unaffected. This leads to a dis-coordination in digestion and hard-to-detect deficiencies of active digestive compounds. In the article after this we will look at the gut barrier specifically, how it works and what happens when it stops working. All references made to enzymes and hormones without an article link were obtained from Uniprot.org.

Hunger and satiety hormones

We rely on two key hormones to tell us when to eat and when we do not need to eat. Failure of coordination between these can lead to overeating and obesity and related illnesses on the one hand, or undereating and anorexia related illnesses on the other.

Leptin release in the hypothalamus, reduces food intake and promotes energy consumption by ‘inducing anorexinogenic factors’. The hormone is released from fat cells and signals the brain to tell us that we do not feel hungry. This hormone reduces consumption – I.e it makes you less hungry. As well as energy balance and body weight control, it regulates bone mass and other hormone secretion. Leptin also contains a single disulphide bond, which is vulnerable to arsenic attachment, leading to deactivation.

Ghrelin, often called the ‘hunger hormone’, is released in the gut and circulates in the blood stream communicating the hunger signal to the nervous system. It also plays a role regulating energy, cardioprotection, prevents muscle breakdown, metabolism of bone and cancer. There are no disulphide bridges in this hormone, so it would not be disrupted by arsenic directly. Therefore when we eat arsenic loaded foods it is more likely that we will continue to feel hungry after eating them, than it is for us to feel satisfied.