very interesting Terry, sounds like a good study for the metabolic bone disease experts.
patsy

Terry.Marshall@rgh-tr.trent.nhs.uk wrote:

> "An outbreak of food poisoning due to Cadmium occurred in Japan in 1945. The syndrome has been called itai-itai disease, which when translated in English means ouch-ouch disease. The syndrome has been so called because it caused severe pain in the back and legs (which forced the victims to cry "ouch-ouch" so to say!). In more serious cases, there was decalcification and fracture of bone. Dislocations were also found to occur. For some strange reason, the complete syndrome was restricted to post-menopausal women, who had had several pregnancies. On investigation it was found that a local mine - the Kamioke zinc-cadmium-lead mine - released its effluents (containing cadmium) in the local Jintzu river. The water from this river was used both for drinking as well as for irrigating the local paddy fields. Thus cadmium found its way in the rice grown there as well. Cadmium ingested through intake of water as well as rice caused chronic cadmium poisoning, which was responsible for this syndrome. For the osteomalacia, undernutrition (common in post-war Japan) was also thought to be a factor."
>
> Terry L Marshall B.A.(Law), M.B.Ch.B., F.R.C.Path
> Consultant Histopathologist
> Rotherham General Hospital, Yorkshire
> terry.marshall@rgh-tr.trent.nhs.uk