Uranium poisoning can occur when uranium and its compounds are introduced into the body through various routes like the gastrointestinal tract, skin or lungs, in both soluble and insoluble forms. It is present naturally in the environment, but exposure has been increased in certain communities, due to industrial activities such as working in the uranium mines and mills.

The toxic effects of uranium that have been documented usually reveal because of accidental exposure to extremely high concentrations. These instances have caused fatalities through severe damage to the kidneys and lungs, which are the main target organs. The inhalation of a high quantity of uranium may lead to structural lung damage and chronic airway obstruction. In some cases, this can result in respiratory failure. Most of the uranium that is ingested undergoes rapid ejection, as part of fecal matter and the rest is promptly excreted in urine. Therefore short term subjection to abnormally elevated doses has been known to culminate in acute renal failure and death. The uranium that remains in the body is deposited in bones, where it is absorbed and persists for 1-2 years without causing symptoms [1]. The excess uranium is also deposited in kidneys and liver. Nonetheless, no other organ systems appear to be negatively affected by uranium.

Studies have shown that chronic exposure to low doses of uranium in the environment or workplace does not have a detrimental effect on health [2]. In addition, the consumption of slightly higher quantities, in drinking water, for example, do not lead to renal failure or long-term morbidity [3] [4]. Workers who are exposed to uranium as an occupational hazard do not suffer from poor health and early death because of uranium; illness, on the contrary, is often linked to the simultaneous presence of other harmful substances, such as radon and radium in uranium mines [5] [6]. Those who do sustain renal damage due to long term accumulation recover once the exposure is halted. Despite its theoretical carcinogenic potential due to its emission of alpha radiation, uranium has not practically shown such properties, and neoplastic changes are attributed to co-existing substance toxicity as well.

• Fatigue

  I’m still dealing with fatigue… the last two days I have been crashing by 1 PM. [optimalprediction.com]

  Iodine deficiency symptoms : ( See iodine testing here ) Weight gain Physical or mental fatigue or lethargy Depression or irritability Dry skin and or hair Muscle pain Painful periods Intolerance to cold or cold hands and feet Constipation, gas, bloating [naturalhealthgroup.com.au]

  Shaun Rusling says he is "devastated" by his diagnosis Shaun Rusling served in the Gulf War and today, he takes a dozen different drugs to treat a catalogue of illnesses, from chronic fatigue and post-traumatic stress disorder to problems with the nervous [news.bbc.co.uk]

  Kidney dysfunction, lung damage, bloody stools, extreme fatigue, joint pain, unsteady gait, memory loss and rashes and, ultimately, cancer and premature death await those exposed to DU. [gulfwarvets.com]

• Collapse

  Dustin Brim, a 22-year-old Army specialist had collapsed three years ago in Iraq from a very aggressive cancer that attacked his kidney, caused a mass to grow over his esophagus and collapsed a lung. [muslimobserver.com]

  When I discovered that one in three hives die each year from Colony Collapse Disorder I knew I had to do something. I took a course with legendary beekeeper Les Crowder and worked up to a dozen hives in my backyard in Santa Fe. [elephantjournal.com]

  Soon after, the uranium market collapsed and mining companies scattered, leaving mountains of radioactive and toxic waste behind, which would gradually leach into underground sources of drinking water. [impactfund.org]

  With the collapse of the Soviet Union and local industry in 1991, the specialists left. Supervision of the town’s 23 tailings sites—dumps containing the hazardous leftovers—became sporadic. [economist.com]

  On the morning of July 16, 1979, neighbors and mill workers woke to the collapse of the huge earthen dam at the United Nuclear Corporation Church Rock uranium mill. [chemheritage.org]

• Camping

  I met Navajo who used them for storage, livestock sheds and even camping not knowing they were dangerous. [elephantjournal.com]

  Dutch marines had taken over the abandoned train depot dubbed Camp Smitty, which was surrounded by tank skeletons, unexploded ordnance and shell casings. They'd brought radiation-detection devices. [nbcnews.com]

  The reservations are also known as prisoner of war camps. In fact, the reservation in Pine Ridge, SD is registered as POW Camp 344. [truth-out.org]

  Level II exposures comprise around 200 soldiers who worked in and around combat vehicles (mainly U.S. friendly fire vehicles) struck by depleted uranium and as many as 600 personnel who took part in the clean up after the fire at Camp Doha. [au.af.mil]

• Agent Orange

  Comparing to the weapons used in Vietnam, Girard said in response to the situation, “It’s somewhat similar to Agent Orange where it was secondary the concern of the aftereffects.” [theloquitur.com]

  They compare the debate over depleted uranium to the controversy surrounding Agent Orange, the toxic herbicide used to defoliate the jungles of Vietnam. [muslimobserver.com]

  Echoes of Agent Orange It took more than 25 years for the Pentagon to acknowledge that Agent Orange — a corrosive defoliant used to melt the jungles of Vietnam and flush out the enemy — was linked to those sufferings. [nbcnews.com]

• Wheelchair Bound

  Others, such as Ray Bristow, 42, of Hull, who was a theatre technician for 32 Field Hospital, are now wheelchair-bound. [xs4all.nl]

• Blurred Vision

  He had constant migraine headaches, blurred vision, blackouts and a burning sensation whenever he urinated." Let us stop right here to say that these physical symptoms are classic symptoms associated with Depleted Uranium poisoning! [cuttingedge.org]

  He had constant migraine headaches, blurred vision, blackouts and a burning sensation whenever he urinated. [gulfwarvets.com]

• Angioedema

  In May, the Army granted him a 40% disability pension for his migraine headaches and for a condition called idiopathic angioedema - unexplained chronic swelling. But Matthew never got the results of his Army test for DU. [cuttingedge.org]

• Fear

  At the time, the MoD was refusing to launch an official screening programme for veterans of the 1991 Gulf War who feared that their illnesses were caused by radiation poisoning from expended DU munitions. [telegraph.co.uk]

  The top-secret status of the atom-bomb project and later cold-war security fears created a lasting imprint on nuclear culture that led to the withholding of information. [chemheritage.org]

  This we will need to counter the forces of destruction and the fear of annihilation that have grown stronger in the last century, especially since the unleashing of atomic and subatomic forces, and which now increasingly permeate our world militarily, [articles.mercola.com]

  And, they argue, no inference should be drawn from the fact that he was a member of the feared Osobysty during a notorious war. Nor was it significant that recruits to the secretive and ruthless URPO were drawn from the FSB’s most brutal quarters. [medium.com]

• Screaming

  The problems she saw during her time at Walter Reed, including her son screaming in pain while doctors argued over medications, had nothing to do with mold and shabby conditions documented in recent news reports. [muslimobserver.com]

  He dreams of gunfire and bombs and soldiers who scream for help. No matter how hard he tries, he never gets there in time. [nbcnews.com]

• Kidney Failure

  Very high uranium intakes (ranging from about 50 to 150 mg depending on the individual) can cause acute kidney failure and death. [web.ead.anl.gov]

  Many Navajo people have died of kidney failure and cancer, conditions linked to uranium contamination. And new research from the CDC shows uranium in babies born now. [npr.org]

  If the exposure is of limited time and amount, the damage usually naturally repaired, but long-term exposure and high concentrations can cause kidney failure. Uranium has both radioactive and heavy metal toxicity. [geoinfo.nmt.edu]

  The Royal Society of England published data showing that battlefield soldiers who inhale or swallow high levels of DU can suffer kidney failure within days. Any soldier now in Iraq who has not inhaled lethal radioactive dust is not breathing. [gulfwarvets.com]

As the kidneys are the most vulnerable to the effects of uranium poisoning, clinical examination includes urinalysis, assessment of renal function, and the identification of signs of renal disease. Common positive findings in urine include proteinuria, beta-2 microglobulin, and uranium. Conversely, the detection of the latter only indicates uranium contact, however, and helps the clinician to gauge the extent and duration of exposure. It does not necessarily convey concurrent renal damage [7]. Furthermore, it is important to clearly elicit substance exposure history, with particular attention to not only uranium, but also to other closely associated noxious material such as silica dust particles, and even medical history, as they aid and guide in diagnosis [1].

1. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. Case study in environmental medicine: taking an exposure history. Available: https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/csem/csem.asp?csem=33. Published June 5, 2015. Updated Aug 9, 2016. Accessed Mar 28, 2017.
2. Boice JD, Mumma MT, Blot WJ. Cancer incidence and mortality in populations living near uranium milling and mining operations in Grants, New Mexico, 1950–2004. Radiat Res. 2010;174(5):624–636.
3. Kurttio P, Auvinen A, Salonen L, et al. Renal effects of uranium in drinking water. Environ Health Perspect. 2002;110(4):337-342.
4. Kurttio P, Harmoinen A, Saha H, et al. Kidney toxicity of ingested uranium from drinking water. Am J Kidney Dis. 2006;47(6):972-982.
5. MacFarlane GJ, Hotopf M, Maconochie N, Blatchley N, Richards A, Lunt M. Long-term mortality amongst Gulf War Veterans: is there a relationship with experiences during deployment and subsequent morbidity? Int J Epidemiol. 2005;34(6):1403–1408.
6. Boice JD, Cohen SS, Mumma MT, Chadda B, Blot WJ. A cohort study of uranium millers and miners of Grants, New Mexico, 1979–2005. J Radiol Prot. 2008;28(3):303–325.
7. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Fourth National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals. Available: https://www.cdc.gov/exposurereport/pdf/fourthreport.pdf. Published Feb 2009. Accessed Mar 28, 2017.