Heartbeat, human

Symptoms of intoxication in humans caused by accidental ingestion of Kou-Wen plants have been described as follows. The effect on the digestive system starts with loss of appetite and turn of the stomach, and continues to severe abdominal pain and intestinal bleeding. The effect on the respiratory system presents as breathing difficulties which finally lead to death by respiratory failure. The effect on muscle innervation usually results in generalized muscular weakness and paralysis of the limbs. The effect on the circulatory system starts with heartbeat disorders and a drop in blood pressure, but heart failure is not a common cause of death. In addition to dilation of pupils, a drop in body temperature and proliferation of white blood cells have also been obseryed (70). 

Most textbooks in the 1960s suggested that deaths from belladonnoid dmgs were likewise due to central respiratory failure, even though there were insufficient empirical data to confirm this conclusion. To the contrary, a review of lethal studies of BZ in rats indicated that cardiac, rather than respiratory, failure caused death. Unlike morphine, BZ disturbs the heartbeat not the ability to breathe. The ability of the rat (or human) beating heart to mechanically ventilate the lungs, therefore, does not apply to BZ. 

Dinitrophenols (as alkali salts or aliphatic amine salts) have long been used in weed control. Human exposure to these compounds has led to nausea, gastric upset, rapid breathing, tachycardia (rapid heartbeat), cyanosis, and ultimately coma. Death or recovery occurs within 24 hours. 

Toxicity Dalapon is moderately toxic to humans. Skin and inhalation exposure could be of significance to dalapon production workers, pesticide applicators, and some agricultural workers. Effects of acute exposure include absence of appetite, slowed heartbeat, skin irritation, eye irritation (e.g., conjunctivitis or corneal damage), gastrointestinal disturbances (e.g., vomiting or diarrhea), tiredness, pain, and irritation of the respiratory tract. Dalapon is an acid that may cause corrosive... 

O A typical adult human heart beats an average of 60 times per minute. If you were allotted a mole of heartbeats, how long, in years, could you expect to live You may assume each year has 365 days. 

Toxicity and health effects Human exposure to hydrogen bromide causes redness, pain, frostbite, and severe burns and blisters on the skin. Eye contact with the liquid causes redness, pain, severe burns, and possible permanent eye damage. It causes nose and throat irritation, watery eyes, bloody nose, nausea, vomiting, chest pain and/or light-headedness, coughing, shortness of breath, fluid in the lungs or pulmonary edema, unconsciousness, low blood pressure, rapid heartbeat, kidney failure, coma, and death. ... 

Vapors are irritating to the eyes and respiratory system at higher concentrations. Humans may experience tightness in the chest, headache, and weakness with difficulty in standing, and vertigo, cyanotic, rapid respirations, low blood pressures, and tachycardia. Mental confusion, tonic clonic contractions of limbs and facial muscles, irregular heartbeat, coma, and death may occur after exposure to higher... 

Inhalation of high concentrations of propene by experimental animals results in anesthetic effects similar to those seen in humans. Anesthesia has been induced in cats after exposure to concentrations of propene of 20-31% without causing other signs of toxicity. At higher concentrations, from 40% to 80%, blood pressure decreased, pulse increased, and an unusual heartbeat was reported. Cardiac sensitization was reported following propene exposure in dogs. 

The researchers next treated one human. (No strangulation was attempted this time. It s hard to find volunteers.) A 60-year-old woman developed "vascular collapse" of unknown cause. She had an abnormal heartbeat and practically no blood pressure. Within one minute of H202 infusion, her heart reverted to normal and blood pressure returned to a normal level. 

When the body is charged with oxygen, the heartbeat is more vigorous, the tissues are more elastic, emotions are animated, and the mind is quick and resourceful. There is no chemical element more vital to health, vigor, and efficient brain function than oxygen. A person can go without food more than a month, and without water for about a week, but without oxygen, a human being dies of asphyxiation in minutes. 

A diagram of a human heart, showing the auricular node and the neurology of the heartbeat. 

A compound may also be toxic if it modulate.s the activity of a protein unrelated to its intended target. For example, many compounds block ion channels such as the potassium channel HERG (the human homolog of a Drosophila channel found in a mutant termed ether-a-go-go ), causing disturbances of the heartbeat. To avoid cardiac side effects, many compounds are screened for their ability to block such channels. 

Dramatic action, or "movement of spirit," as Aristotle defines it in the Poetics, is the life force, the heartbeat, of any screenplay.2 Psyche, the word he uses for spirit, meant both "mind" and "soul" to the ancient Greeks—the inner energy that fuels human thoughts and feelings, the underlying force that motivates us. 

Nutritionist Adelle Davis was perhaps the progenitor, with her weU-known series of books. (Her influence continues by virtue of The Adelle Davis Foimdation, 116 Middle Road, Sirile K, Montecito, CA 93108, 805-969-9076.) Among many other things, Adelle Davis was a strong proponent of including brewers yeast or nutritional yeast in the diet (Anecdotal evidence suggests that it will smooth out the heartbeat and a person s disposition as well. It also helps to keep off ticks, from both humans... 

Gamma-i,2,3,4,5,6-hexachlorocyclohexane poses a health hazard to humans if ingested, inhaled, or deposited on the skin. It may cause skin irritation or rashes, nausea and vomiting, nervousness or irritability, accelerated heartbeat, convulsions or seizures, and dizziness or clumsiness. In rare cases, the ingestion of the compound has resulted in a person s death. It has also been classed as a likely carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The compound... 

Potassium bicarbonate (poe-TAS-ee-yum buy-KAR-bo-nate) is a colorless crystalline solid or white powder with no odor and a salty taste. It occurs naturally in salt beds, sea water, silicate rocks, and a number of foods, primarily fruits and vegetables. Potassium bicarbonate is also present in the tissues of humans and other animals, where it is involved in a number of essential biological processes, including digestion, muscle contraction, and heartbeat. It is used primarily in cooking and baking, as a food additive, and in fire extinguishers. 

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