| Name of the disease | Poisoning effect of |
|---|---|
| Plumbism | Lead |
| Itai Itai | Cadmium |
| Mad Hatter's Disease (Erethism) | Mercury |
| Minamata Disease | Mercury |
| Byssinosis (Brown Lung disease) | Cotton Dust |
| Mesothelioma | Asbestos |
| White Lung disease | Asbestos |
| Black Lung disease | Coal dust |
| Silicosis | Silica Dust |
| Siderosis | Iron Dust |
Minamata Disease is so named because it was first discovered in Minamata city of Japan in 1956. It is a neurological condition caused due to the effects of methylmercury which was released in the industrial wastewater from a chemical factory. This highly toxic chemical bioaccumulated and biomagnified in shellfish and fish in Minamata Bay and the Shiranui Sea. The local population consumed the fish and were severely affected by the disease.
Itai Itai meaning "It hurts, It hurts" in Japanese was the name coined by locals in Toyoma in Japan where it first occurred in 1912. Itai-itai disease mainly affects women residing in rice farming areas irrigated by the contaminated Jinzu River in Toyama. The disease is characterised by osteomalaecia with severe bone pain and is associated with renal tubular dysfunction.
Mad Hatter's disease Mercury was used in hat making in the 19th century and hat makers who inhaled mercury vapours exhibited symptoms of the disease and hence the name. Affected persons exhibit symptoms like vomiting, skin rashes, tremors, twitching, and excitability.