Abstract
(1) Background: Geomedical science focuses on the relationship between environmental impact and human health. The abundance of elements in a geographic area is reflected accumulation of these elements in humans. This study aims to describe the relationship between concentrations of geologic elements and accumulations in the human body as well as element-related symptoms. (2) Methods: Geogenic sampling was conducted in an Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining (ASGM) area and around residential areas in Indonesia, and samples were analyzed using particle-induced X-ray Emission (PIXE). Head hair was sampled, and health assessments were performed to determine heavy metal exposure, especially to copper and mercury. (3) Results: Results show that potentially toxic elements’ accumulation in the human body follows the abundance of these elements in the geographic area, which then affect health and manifest with specific signs and symptoms. East Tulabolo is an area rich in copper (hazard quotient (HQ) in dust = 152.8), and most of the population shows the sign of Kayser–Fleischer rings. Likewise, the Dunggilata area has the highest concentration of mercury, especially in the dust (HQ = 11.1), related to ASGM activity in residential areas. (4) Conclusions: This study concludes that the geogenic concentration of elements parallels the accumulation of human tissue and manifests with element-related signs and symptoms.
Highlights
This study focuses on two elements based on geologic character studies and sources of heavy metal pollution: copper (Cu) and mercury (Hg)
The bioavailability of elements is the main factor that influences the impact of an environmental chemical species in the human body
The bioaccumulation of elements in geologic samples is used as a consideration in risk assessment, whereas biological samples are used as bioindicators of exposure to an assessment, whereas biological samples are used as bioindicators of exposure to an element element including toxicsuch elements
Summary
Human health is constantly influenced by exposure to potentially toxic elements in the environment [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8]. Human interaction with potentially toxic elements has been quite close, through exposure to medicine, equipment, and other sources. Heavy metal concentrations in the environment are quite high, with contaminants in food or geogenic materials. In this industrial age, large-scale mining has caused occupational diseases in the form of poisoning by various toxic metals [1]. Toxic elements do not undergo metabolism in the human body; instead, they accumulate there and combine with ligands that are biochemical, resulting in toxic effects [1,9,10,11]
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