• Question: can sulfur effect your brain ?

    Asked by miller to Aime, Akshat, Diana, Gemma, Judith on 20 Jun 2011.
    • Photo: Gemma Sharp

      Gemma Sharp answered on 19 Jun 2011:

      I’m sure there are a few ways sulfur can affect your brain, but I’ll tell you about just one.

      Some people say that sulfites (chemicals that contain the sulfite ion – one sulfur atom bound to three oxygen atoms) in red and white wine are responsible for the headaches some people get when they drink wine. This is through a sort of allergic reaction. Some people think cheap wine contains more sulfites, so cheap wine might be more likely to give people headaches.

      I think the headaches might be something to do with the alcohol in the wine too though 😉

    • Photo: Akshat Rathi

      Akshat Rathi answered on 19 Jun 2011:

      Elemental sulfur can have a damaging effect on your brain. Studies on animals have shown that. But fortunately for us sulfur is fairly reactive element. It gets oxidised to sulfur oxides or reacts metals to form metal sulfides.

    • Photo: Judith McCann

      Judith McCann answered on 20 Jun 2011:

      Hydrogen sulfide reacts with the tissue of the lungs so stops as much oxygen getting into the blood stream-this could affect the brain, if not enough oxygen reaches the cells they could die

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