Although some metals meet certain criteria and not others, most would agree the elements mercury, bismuth, and lead are toxic metals with sufficiently high density. Heavy metals up to the vicinity of iron (in the periodic table) are largely made via stellar nucleosynthesis. Heavy metal poisoning is rare, but it can have lasting effects on your health. Dispute over "Heavy Metal" Term According to the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry or IUPAC, the term "heavy metal" may be a " meaningless term " because there is no standardized definition for a heavy metal.
Heavy metal may be the most misunderstood and misrepresented form of music in Western culture. Heavy metals like lead and mercury are toxic and can make you sick. Less commonly, any metal with a potential negative health effect or environmental impact may be termed a heavy metal, such as cobalt, chromium, lithium and even iron. Most heavy metals have a high atomic number, atomic weight and a specific gravity greater than 5.0 Heavy metals include some metalloids, transition metals, basic metals, lanthanides, and actinides. In this process, lighter elements from hydrogen to silicon undergo successive fusion reactions inside stars, releasing light and heat and forming heavier elements with higher atomic numbers.

Learn about the symptoms, sources, diagnosis and treatment for heavy metal poisoning and toxicity.
From the widespread misuse of the term to the insistence by fans, journalists, and musicians that bands playing in seemingly hundreds of different musical styles be included under its canopy, heavy metal causes confusion almost everywhere it goes. The term has particular application to cadmium, mercury, lead and arsenic, all of which appear in the World Health Organization's list of 10 chemicals of major public concern. Learn how it happens and whether home detox kits live up to the hype. A toxic heavy metal is any relatively dense metal or metalloid that is noted for its potential toxicity, especially in environmental contexts.