What are acute effects of cadmium exposure?

• A. Nausea, vomiting, and lung irritation
• B. Kidney damage
• C. Bone weakening
• D. Itai-itai disease

Answer: (A)

Cadmium’s acute toxicity mainly hits organs that encounter the metal quickly: the gastrointestinal tract and the lungs. Ingested cadmium irritates the stomach and intestines, causing nausea and vomiting (often with abdominal cramps). Inhaled cadmium compounds irritate the respiratory tract, producing lung irritation and, in more severe cases, pneumonitis or pulmonary edema. These are classic short-term, or acute, effects.

The other effects listed—kidney damage, bone weakening, and Itai-itai disease—result from long-term, chronic exposure where cadmium accumulates in the body and gradually harms kidneys and bones. So the combination of nausea/vomiting with lung irritation best represents acute exposure.