Editing Toxic heavy metal (section)

== Entry routes ==

Toxic metals enter plant, animal and human tissues via air inhalation, diet, and manual handling. [[Welding]], [[Galvanization|galvanizing]], brazing, and soldering exposes workers to fumes that may be inhaled and result in [[metal fume fever]].{{sfn|Kaye|Young|O'Sullivan|2002}}  Motor vehicle emissions are a major source of airborne contaminants including arsenic, cadmium, cobalt, nickel, lead, antimony, [[vanadium]], zinc, [[platinum]], [[palladium]] and [[rhodium]].{{sfn|Balasubramanian|He|Wang|2009|p=476}} Water sources (groundwater, lakes, streams and rivers) can be polluted by toxic metals leaching from industrial and consumer waste; [[acid rain]] can exacerbate this process by releasing toxic metals trapped in soils.{{sfn|Worsztynowicz|Mill|1995|p=361}} Transport through soil can be facilitated by the presence of preferential flow paths (macropores) and dissolved organic compounds.{{sfn|Camobreco|Richards|Steenhuis|Peverly|1996}} Plants are exposed to toxic metals through the uptake of water; animals eat these plants; ingestion of plant- and animal-based foods are the largest sources of toxic metals in humans.{{sfn|Radojevic|Bashkin|1999|p=406}} Absorption through skin contact, for example from contact with soil, or metal containing toys and jewelry,{{sfn|Guney|Zagury|2014}} is another potential source of toxic metal contamination.{{sfn|Qu|Ma|Yang|Lie|2014|p=144}} Toxic metals can [[bioaccumulation|bioaccumulate]] in organisms as they are hard to [[Metabolism|metabolize]].{{sfn|Pezzarossa|Gorini|Petruzelli|2011|p=94}}