Chronic toxicity is a property of a substance that has toxic effects on a living organism, when that organism is exposed to the substance continuously or repeatedly. Compared with acute toxicity.
Two distinct situations need to be considered:
- Prolonged exposure to a substance
For example if a person drinks too much alcohol on a regular basis then their health may suffer as a result. The alcohol does not have a long biological halflife but it is supplied on a regular basis to the body of the person.
- Prolonged internal exposure because a substance remains in the body for a long time
For example if a person were to ingest radium much of it would be absorbed into the bones where it would exert a harmful effect on a person's health. The radium might cause a disturbance in the blood cell-forming part of the bone (bone marrow)
See also
 |
This chemistry article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
