Original Research Article Weight of Evidence of Long-Term Effects of Heavy Metals on the Cardiovascular System at a Population Level

Heavy metals ‟ chronic exposure is a major contributor to cardiovascular diseases (CVD) at the population level, and regions with high levels of heavy metals ‟ contamination showed increased rate of mortality rate from cardiovascular diseases. Among different heavy metals; Arsenic, Lead, Mercury, and Cadmium are the most toxic to human health. The results of recent studies of the correlation between the four heavy metals and CVD are inconsistent with those of earlier studies and the general picture of the correlation between exposure to heavy metals and CVD presented by these studies is either inconsistent or not conclusive. Therefore, the purpose of the present paper is to weigh the amount of evidence presented in the literature for an association between each heavy metal and five cardio-vascular diseases: Coronary heart disease, cerebro-vascular disease, peripheral arterial disease, hypertension, and atherosclerosis