wiki:cinnabar (view original)
| Cinnabar |
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Other Names
zhu sha
朱砂
硃砂
HgS
Mercuric sulfide
Mercury sulfide
Mercury (II) sulfide
Vermilion
Properties
toxic, sweet, cooling.
Channels Entered:
Heart/Mind (ShaoYin) [1]
Actions
Sedates the Heart/Mind, calms the spirit, expels Phlegm, stops tremors, calms convulsions, clears heat, prevents putrefaction.[1]
Indications
Phlegm-heat blocking the Heart/Mind and Pericardium (like mania, convulsions, etc)
Used topically for sores and poisonous bites
Combinations
Magnetite (ci shi 磁石 / ci tie kuang 磁鐵礦 ) adds to the calming and sedative effects by containing floating Yang and augmenting Yin, and also assists in re-establishing the communication between the Heart and Kidneys.[1]
Other uses
Cinnabar was used to add vermilion pigmentation to paintings, ceramics, and tattoos, but because of its toxicity is rarely used today for that purpose.
Vermilion was useful in preserving human bones from 5,000 years ago; remarkably well-preserved human bones have been found in the dolmenic burial ‘La Velilla’ in Osorno (Palencia, Spain) which were carefully covered by pulverized cinnabar (vermillion) which ensured their preservation even in non-favorable climatic conditions. Chemical and thermal analyses of the vermilion demonstrated great purity and showed that the cinnabar was pulverized and washed (but not heated), producing a bright red-orange tone.[8]
Known Toxicity or Adverse Reactions
If cinnabar is heated to decomposition, it emits toxic fumes of hydrogen sulfide ( H2S ), oxides of sulfur ( SOx ) and oxides of mercury ( HgO ).
Cinnabar is insoluble and poorly absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract; it is chemically inert with a relatively low toxic potential when taken orally.[2]
The provisional tolerable weekly intake of inorganic mercury is 4 µg/kg of body weight.[5]
Absorbed mercury from cinnabar is mainly accumulated in the kidneys and resembles the disposition pattern of inorganic mercury.[2]
Long term use of cinnabar can cause renal dysfunction.[2]
The doses of cinnabar required to produce neurotoxicity are thousands of times higher than methylmercury.[2]
Fetuses are the most susceptible to developmental effects of mercury and therefore cinnabar should never be used during pregnancy.[3]
It should be noted that every person on earth is exposed to some mercury.[3]
Some pharmaceuticals and vaccines use a small amount mercury known as ethylmercury. Ethylmercury passes through the body and small amounts are not considered a health risk.[3]
Research
Prolonged use of cinnabar in mice demonstrated that it was significantly absorbed by gastrointestinal tract and transported to brain tissues. [4]
Changes in NOx levels and Na+/K+-ATPase activities appear to be the underlying mechanism of the toxicological effects of cinnabar, which may supply an important and useful biomarker in offspring exposure to low dose and long-term mercuric compounds-induced neurotoxicity. [6]
Accumulation of Hg in MeHg and HgCl2 treated mice was 96 and 71-fold higher than controls, respectively, but was only 2-fold after cinnabar and An Gong Niu Huang Wan administration; Expressions of metallothionein-1 and heme oxygenase-1, biomarkers for Hg toxicity, were increased by MeHg and HgCl2, but were not altered in cinnabar and An Gong Niu Huang treated mice.[7]