A research published on Thursday revealed that indigenous inhabitants from nine communities in Brazil’s Yanomami area suffered mercury poisoning. Those residing closest to illegal gold mining sites showed higher levels of contamination. The findings underscore the detrimental impact of illegal mining activities on the health of indigenous populations.
In October 2022, hair samples from over 287 Indigenous individuals were gathered for the study by the state-run Fiocruz institute in Brazil. All samples tested positive for mercury pollution, indicating widespread contamination. Additionally, nearly 11% of the samples contained significant concentrations of the heavy metal, commonly utilized by wildcat miners in Brazil for gold extraction from ore and dirt.
About 28,000 Yanomami people reside in the northern states of Roraima and Amazonas, Brazil, which is home to the largest Indigenous reservation in the country. Facing a humanitarian crisis, they are experiencing fatalities and starvation due to the invasion of their territory by illegal miners.
The study’s coordinator, Paulo Basta, stated in a statement that “this scenario of vulnerability exponentially increases the risk of illness in children living in the region,” especially in those under five.
The study reveals that indigenous people with elevated mercury levels exhibited cognitive deficiencies and demonstrated nerve damage on their extremities more frequently. Furthermore, it underscores the correlation between mercury exposure and adverse health effects among indigenous populations.
More than eighty percent of survey participants admitted to having malaria at some point.
Nearly half of the children under 11 in the study suffered from acute malnutrition, and over 25% were anemic. According to the study, around 80% of them were shorter than anticipated for their age, which may also indicate chronic malnutrition.
The 47 fish samples that the Fiocruz researchers gathered all tested positive for mercury contamination.
“Our children are being born sick. Women are sick, our old people are sick! Our people are dying because of mining,” Dario Kopenawa, head of the Yanomami’s Hutukara Association said in a press statement that accompanied the study.
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